The room was filled with hundreds of people. He felt his heart pounding in his chest as he read through his notes one last time.
He knows he doesn’t have a lot of time, so it’s important to make sure that he utilizes his little time. They were acting so ignorant, someone needed to inform them of that. And if they insisted on forcing the matter, he was ready to show them who he was: a strong-willed father with a tendency of being creative.
The day was no different than others. The children packed their lunches in their bags after breakfast and went off to school.
After the kids went to school the daily cycle of working, running errands, and doing chores started. He took a moment to step outside and appreciate the warmth of the sun on his face. He spent this moment in gratitude. After all, his past life had been unimaginable to most people.
Dimis, who was born in Iran, has endured years of hardship.
People in the US complained easily about government control, but Dimis lived real streams of dictatorial-style rules. To make matters worse, he was a Christian in a country that did not treat Christians kindly. Where he came from is the reason why he is thankful for his current life. However, by the time school ended, it would have triggered a rage.
The public schools in Virginia’s Loudoun County were always rushing to keep up with whatever political agenda the left or right was pursuing at the time.
Thus, announcements on the implementation of new rules or policy changes were nothing out of the ordinary. When Dimis son arrived home, he handed Dimis a paper that appears to be official. Dimis was frustrated, what new change is the school announcing this time? Dimis braced himself for whatever news the document may bring.
Dimis face changed to a darker shade of red with every word that he read. He was furious.
It was another reminder of how students should behave around students that classify themselves as transgendered and those students who don’t identify as cis-gendered. This notice was concerned with how to appropriately use pronouns. This was the final straw for Dimis.
Dimis tore up the notice and threw it in the bin. The school is aiming to control the way students should speak! How absurd.
The only important thing the notice informed Dimis of was the date of the next school board meeting. It stated that the meeting was open to all. The school had no idea who they were dealing with and what Dimis was capable of.
Steam was flowing out of his ears by the time the meeting got around a few days later.
Despite feeling enraged, Dimis remained cool and calm. He had his speech ready and he was planning on throwing a unique piece of ammunition straight in the board’s face. When Dimis finally got his turn, he let the board have it. He did not hold back at all.
Dimis tried to fit in as many of his thoughts as he possibly could. He expressed how angered he was by the fact that the schools weren’t prioritizing teaching the children the necessary curriculum but focused on rather brainwashing them. He stated where he was from in Iran the schools had the decency to keep the indoctrination separate from teaching.
Forcing children to use pronouns that could change daily was absurd. As a parent, Dimis felt responsible to teach his children that and that it was not the responsibility of the teachers. He didn’t stop there…
Dimis eyes were filled with rage and sweat was dripping off his forehead. He did not hold back and he yelled, “You want to shove that garbage down my kids’ throats? I will make you call my son “King” and my daughter “Queen.” And when you look at me, you call me “master. You really want that word in your mouth when you talk to me?”
It wasn’t long before he ran out of time and had to sit down. He’d fired his first round of ammo. But the war was far from over.
Nobody in the room expected it to happen.
Dimis sat in the audience, ruminating on the policy. Parents of transgender children approached and applauded the rules, claiming that their children had a right to be identified. Dimis frowned, realizing that he had forgotten to mention that one can only be born into one of two genders. Out of nowhere, a woman appeared in front of the microphone. It was someone he was familiar with.
It was one of the teachers from the school.
She cleared her throat and went on to describe how teachers weren’t treated well, were paid nothing, and a mountain of other injustices. But now, she also had to enforce the school’s political agenda? The next part, Dimis couldn’t have said it better himself.
“I believe that everyone should be treated with respect and kindness – even if I don’t agree with the things you think, or what you think you are. We’re human and that should be enough. I’m honestly tired of all of this. So, if you’re going to make me choose between my job and my faith, then I have your answer.”
And, right there and then, she quit. Dimis’ jaw dropped to the floor.
The entire council meeting stayed with Dimis for days after it had ended.
There was no word on the school’s decision, and he thought the pressure they had put on the administrators was going to fizzle out, but then he was contacted by a news outlet. They wanted to talk to him.
Apparently, the video of the meeting had not only been sent out, but it had also erupted into a viral story. The clips already had over a hundred thousand views!
There was the predictable pushback and digital yelling from those who thought themselves something other than how they were born. It was Dimis second chance to say everything he had wanted to.
He didn’t care. He grew up in a rough neighborhood and had thick skin. It was the rest of them that were far too delicate. They needed to realize that they can’t expect to snap their fingers and force everyone around them to do what they wanted.
If they wanted to live their lives, others should have the same freedom as well – even if it means disagreeing.
