Source: MediaNews Group/The Riverside Press-Enterprise via Getty Images / Getty
Black women and mothers are doing the work to clear out wrongdoers in our nation’s education system and make sure concepts like Critical Race Theory (CRT) don’t go hidden and forgotten.
A piece published in late October by TheNation shined a light on a group of Black mothers in Temecula, California, who’ve galvanized with the One Temecula Valley PAC to remove Temecula Valley Unified School District (TVUSD) Board Members Jennifer Wiersma, Joseph Komrosky and Danny Gonzalez.
PACs, or Political Action Committees, are tax-exempt organizations dedicated to raising and donating funds in favor or against candidates, political initiatives and legislation.
The Black Mothers’ collaboration with the One Temecula Valley PAC includes a “Recall All 3” campaign targeting the contested TVUSD board members. The partnership also includes getting enough signatures from registered voters to get the board members’ recalls on the March 2024 primary ballot.
The mothers reportedly approached the One Temecula Valley PAC after being kicked out of a TVUSD board meeting. Monica La Combe, a member of the Black woman-led coalition, told TheNation that her advocacy in the group wasn’t about her political party leanings. Instead, she said it was more of a measure toward uplifting Black and marginalized groups.
“We’re going to use what’s available to us — the right we have as citizens to recall,” declared La Combe. “I’m not a Democrat, I’m not a Republican… I’m a Black mom. [I’m going to make] sure that Black and marginalized voices are heard, and our issues are addressed.”
TVUSD claims to oversee the learning of around 28,000 students.
One Temecula Valley PAC’s website alleges that besides the trio rushing to ban CRT, the contested board members have also been fiscally irresponsible and professionally disrespectful, creating a dysfunctional and toxic environment within TVUSD.
Wiersma is an “Area 3” trustee and clerk on the TVUSD board. Her biography on the organization’s website says, “Believing in the goodness of faith, family, and freedom, [Wiersma’s] honored to advocate for parental rights while prioritizing an excellent education for the future of all TVUSD students.”
Komrosky is the TVUSD board’s president and a trustee in Area 4. Gonzalez is a trustee in Area 2. The terms of all three members are set to expire in December 2026.
At her first meeting as a board member, Wiersma reportedly said, “Every skin color has both been a slave and owned a slave,” while she denounced Ethnic Studies’ “overemphasis on white supremacy.”
California Governor Gavin Newsome passed a bill in 2021 that made Ethnic Studies a graduation requirement for public high schools in the states, starting with the class of 2030, according to The San Francisco Chronicle.
RELATED CONTENT: “Black Women Are Spearheading The Fight Against Book Bans”
