Lois Cote

AS A 79-YEAR-OLD NEW HAMPSHIRE CITIZEN, I AM ASKING THE SPONSORS AND OTHER SUPPORTERS OF HB 1778 TO ITL THIS BILL - TO ME, A STRANGE AND VERY TIME-WASTEFUL EFFORT TO AMEND A LAW THAT HAS BEEN FOUND UNCONSTITUTIONAL IN FEDERAL DISTRICT COURT AND IS STILL IN APPEALS COURT. (SEE BELOW) ADDITIONALLY, I FULLY AGREE WITH THE FIRST COURT'S FINDING: "In his decision, Judge Paul Barbadoro held that the law, known by opponents as the “divisive concepts” or “banned concepts” law, violated teachers’ 14th Amendment rights because it is too vague for them to follow. “The Amendments are viewpoint-based restrictions on speech that do not provide either fair warning to educators of what they prohibit or sufficient standards for law enforcement to prevent arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement,” Barbadoro wrote, referring to the statutory changes passed by the law." - from NEW HAMPSHIRE BILLETIN Mat 28, 2024 FUTHER, I BELIEVE THIS BILL TO BE ANOTHER EFFORT THAT IS VIEWPOINT-BASED, ARBITRARY AND HIGHLY DISCRIMINATORY. YOU HAVE USED SUCH AN EXTRAORDINARY DEGREE OF CONVOLUTION AND CONTORTION IN DEFINING "PERSONAL IDENTITY" AS IDEOLOGY AS TO MAKE EVEN THE WORD "DEFINITION" UNRECOGNIZABLE. PLEASE JUSR ITL HB1778 Trellis Legal News and Insights New Hampshire Pushes to Revive 'Divisive Concepts' Law 10 Apr 2025 BOSTON — Lawyers for the state of New Hampshire asked a federal appeals court Tuesday to reinstate a 2021 law that bans public school teachers and state employees from endorsing certain ideas about race and gender. The law, part of the 2021 budget bill and often referred to by critics as the “divisive concepts” law, was struck down last year by U.S. District Court Judge Paul Barbadoro. He ruled the law was vague and unconstitutionally limited free speech protections for educators. Now, the state is appealing that decision to the First Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston. The appeals court has not yet indicated when it will issue a ruling.