In the United States, the national political climate is one of polarization and tension. Since president Joe Biden took office in January of 2021, the public has faced calamitous times domestically and internationally. In truth, the United States has been engulfed in a “cold” cultural war for years. This “cold” battle has not been confined to the political arena; indeed, most aspects of average life in the United States has been affected, with corporate America and the field public education often being the location of the ongoing cultural skirmishes. Earlier in the year, InBev, the parent company that owns Anheuser-Busch lost millions of dollars after marketing their beer to transgender and LGBTQ activists for pride month in June of 2023. The company Target also suffered after rolling out several products of children’s clothing which displayed gay pride and transgender messaging on garments for toddlers. Swim pieces crafted which appear to be made for transgender persons were sold by Target in sizes fit for young children. These products reach shelves during a period in which a tense discourse surrounding transgender education for minors’ rages in communities around the nation, most notably in New Jersey.
In the Garden State, dozens of school boards have defiantly stood against Governor Phil Murphy and the state Department of Education. The progressive head of state in New Jersey has enacted new guidelines which would mandate school districts to keep secrets from parents. If a student arrives on campus and wishes to be called another name other than one assigned at birth (a name of the opposite gender), the school would be under order not to inform the parents of this decision. Ultimately, parents across the state are rightfully enraged.
In Ohio, a school board member motioned sarcastically in a “Nazi” salute. In a symbolic gesture against the school board president, board member Anne Zakkour made the movement. Immediately following the episode, the president announced his resignation.
