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Parents sue N.H. school district following wristband protest against transgender girl at soccer game

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Parents sue N.H. school district following wristband protest against transgender girl at soccer game


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A 15-year-old transgender girl is playing on the Plymouth team as she and another teen challenge a New Hampshire ban in court.

Parents wore pink “XX” wristbands at a soccer match in Bow, N.H., on Sept. 17, 2024, to protest the inclusion of transgender athletes in girls’ school sports. Image via federal court records

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Three parents and a grandparent have sued a New Hampshire school district, saying their rights were violated when they were barred from school grounds for wearing pink wristbands with “XX,” representing the female chromosome pair, in protest of a transgender girl playing in a girls soccer game.

The lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Concord followed a Sept. 17 match at Bow High School against Plymouth Regional High School. A 15-year-old transgender girl is playing on the Plymouth team as she and another teen challenge a New Hampshire ban in court.

Two of the parents whose daughters play for Bow wore the wristbands during the second half of the game to “silently express their opinion about the importance of reserving women’s sports for biological females,” according to their lawsuit filed by attorneys from the Institute for Free Speech.

The lawsuit said school officials and a local police officer confronted the parents during the game, telling them to remove the wristbands or leave. The plaintiffs refused, citing their First Amendment rights, then said they were threatened with arrest for trespassing.

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At one point, the referee stopped the game and said that Bow High School would forfeit if the plaintiffs did not remove their wristbands, the lawsuit said. The wristbands were removed and the game resumed.

Following the game, the two parents received “No Trespass Orders” banning them from school grounds and events, the lawsuit said. One was banned for a week, the other for the fall term.

“Parents don’t shed their First Amendment rights at the entrance to a school’s soccer field. We wore pink wristbands to silently support our daughters and their right to fair competition,” Kyle Fellers, one of the plaintiffs who said he received a no-trespass order, said in a statement. “Instead of fostering open dialogue, school officials responded with threats and bans that have a direct impact on our lives and our children’s lives.”

The lawsuit says it seeks to prevent what it describes as the unconstitutional application of several school policies, including those requiring “mutual respect, civility, and orderly conduct” and prohibiting actions that “injure, threaten, harass, or intimidate” or “impede, delay, disrupt, or otherwise interfere with any school activity or function.”

In addition to the school district, the lawsuit names as defendants district Superintendent Marcy Kelley, Bow High School Principal Matt Fisk, school athletic director Michael Desilets, as well as the police officer and referee.

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“At this time, we have no comment,” Kelley said in an email Tuesday when asked if she, other members of the school district, or an attorney representing them, wanted to respond to the lawsuit. Emails sent to the police officer and to the organization representing the referee were not immediately answered.

An email seeking comment from the attorney representing the transgender athlete also was not immediately returned.

Bow School Board chairperson Bryce Larrabee mentioned the lawsuit at a meeting Monday night and said the board would not be commenting on it. Kelley, who attended the meeting, also did not comment on the lawsuit.

Audience members spoke in favor and against the protesters during the public comment period.

“You just silenced someone who had a different opinion,” one man said.

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Criticizing those who wore the pink wristbands during the game, the parent of a player on the Bow team said, “This is not the right way to go about doing things.”





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New Hampshire

N.H. lawmakers to vote on increasing tolls, civil rights, and k-12 education – The Boston Globe

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N.H. lawmakers to vote on increasing tolls, civil rights, and k-12 education – The Boston Globe


One proposal (Senate Bill 627) would generate more than $53 million per year in estimated revenue for turnpike projects by essentially doubling what certain cars pay on the state’s toll roads.

The cash fare for Hampton’s main toll booth on Interstate 95, for example, would jump from $2 to $4 for cars and pickup trucks. The toll wouldn’t increase at all for motorists who use New Hampshire’s E-ZPass transponders.

“Surrounding states already have the same in-state discount structure in place,” Democratic Representative Martin Jack of Nashua wrote on behalf of a House committee that unanimously recommended the bill.

A potential hitch: Governor Kelly Ayotte. She’s expressed opposition to the whole toll-hiking idea, and proven she’s not afraid to use her veto pen.

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Modifying civil rights standard

Another proposal (Senate Bill 464) would add a few words to the state’s Civil Rights Act. Instead of addressing conduct that is merely “motivated by” a legally protected characteristic, the proposed revision would address conduct that is “substantially motivated by hostility towards the victim’s” protected characteristic (such as their race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, sex, gender identity, or disability).

The prime sponsor, Republican Senator Daryl Abbas, an attorney, testified the change was small and aligned with the law’s intent. But the attorney who oversees the Civil Rights Unit at the New Hampshire Department of Justice, Sean Locke, testified in opposition, saying the proposal could reduce protections, especially since the meaning of “substantially” is somewhat vague.

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The House is also weighing a proposed amendment that would add a few more words than Abbas’s version, potentially narrowing the Civil Rights Act’s applicability a bit further.

Open enrollment for K-12 schools

A third proposal up for a vote on Thursday (Senate Bill 101) would make every K-12 public school in New Hampshire an “open enrollment” school. That way, students could freely choose to transfer to a district other than the one where they live.

The proposed policy is controversial, partly because of how schools are funded. Districts rely mostly on local property taxes to cover their costs, as the state government chips in relatively little, and property tax rates vary widely from one community to the next. That generates concern about who will foot the bill when a student transfers.

In light of those concerns, Republicans are offering a compromise amendment to SB 101 that would require the state to provide more money per pupil that a district receives via open enrollment, as the New Hampshire Bulletin reported. Democrats are offering their own amendment to establish a study commission on this topic, rather than adopt the proposed policy now.

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Lawmakers have until May 14 to take action on the bills that came from the other chamber, though they have until June 4 to iron out any discrepancies.

Amanda Gokee of the Globe staff contributed to this report.


This story appears in Globe NH | Morning Report, a free email newsletter focused on New Hampshire, including great coverage from the Boston Globe and links to interesting articles elsewhere. Sign up here.


Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.





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Boston MedFlight expands into NH

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Boston MedFlight expands into NH


Boston MedFlight often touches down at the scene of some of the worst tragedies in New England – where minutes can mean life or death for a victim. The critical care transport operation is now expanding with a new base in New Hampshire.

The organization is hosting an open house at the new Manchester location on Thursday.

Boston MedFlight flies a critical care transport paramedic and nurse on every flight. Jaik Hanley-McCarthy says their helicopters and ground vehicles are equipped to handle just about any emergency medical procedure.

“Anything that can be done in the ICU,” explained Hanley-McCarthy. “We have a mobile lab so we can draw blood and run labs in real time.”

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Boston MedFlight now has five bases across the region.

“Having a base in Manchester just expands this Boston-level care even further north to the more remote areas of the state,” said Hanley-McCarthy.

Boston MedFlight operates as a network of bases and some of the locations are staffed 24 hours.

Chief Executive Officer Maura Hughes says the nonprofit operation survives on public and private donations.

“We provide about $7 million in free care every year to patients,” said Hughes. “Not every hospital can be everything to every patient. We’re really the glue that keeps the health care system together.”

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Heather Young says her daughter, Teighan, is still alive because she was flown for a critical assessment and procedure after falling off a truck and hitting her head.

“She should not be driving and walking and talking and all the things she’s doing as quickly as she is,” said Young.

Teighan just turned 18 and plans to go to college to study the medical field.

“I want to be a nurse and help other people,” she said.

It’s stories like this that keep the men and women who work Boston MedFlight focused on their mission.

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“I think we just go call by call and try to do the best we can,” said Hanley-McCarthy. “I think when we stop and truly think about it, I think that weight is pretty heavy.”

Boston MedFlight also has a yearly reunion where patients and the team get together here in Bedford to meet and check in on their progress. It really shows you how connected they are to the people they help.



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Hiker who set out in warm spring weather found dead after snowstorm in New Hampshire mountains

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Hiker who set out in warm spring weather found dead after snowstorm in New Hampshire mountains


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A Massachusetts hiker who set out in warm spring weather was found dead deep in New Hampshire’s White Mountains after a snowstorm dumped several inches of snow in the area, authorities said.

Kent Wood, 61, of West Roxbury, was discovered Tuesday evening on a remote section of the Kinsman Pond Trail in Franconia Notch, about 5.5 miles from his vehicle, according to New Hampshire Fish and Game.

Wood had driven to Franconia Notch on April 17 for a weekend camping and hiking trip, and set out on a hike the next morning in warm, clear weather, officials said. Family and friends last heard from him Saturday afternoon.

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When he failed to return or make contact for two days, officials said relatives reported him missing Tuesday morning, prompting a large-scale search.

HIKER IDENTIFIED, POPULAR TRAIL CLOSED AFTER DEADLY FALL A UTAH’S ZION NATIONAL PARK

An aerial view of Franconia Notch State Park in New Hampshire, where a hiker was found dead on Tuesday. (Joseph Sohm/Universal Images Group, File)

Rescuers quickly learned Wood had packed for mild conditions, not the three to five inches of snow that fell in the area between Sunday and Monday.

Fog hovers over a narrow road through Franconia Notch in the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire on Dec. 27, 2021. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis)

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Search teams from Fish and Game, PEMI Valley Search and Rescue, and the Army National Guard launched a coordinated effort, focusing on the Lonesome Lake and Kinsman Pond areas.

FAMILY’S SPRING BREAK HIKE TURNS INTO LIFE-OR-DEATH RESCUE AFTER PARENT FALLS 70 FEET OFF UTAH CLIFF

Conservation officers located Wood’s body around 7:41 p.m. Tuesday. Crews carried him out overnight, reaching the trailhead shortly after 1 a.m. Wednesday.

Franconia Notch and the Appalachian Trail are seen in New Hampshire on Sept. 21. (Carol M. Highsmith/Buyenlarge/Getty Images)

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Since Friday, six hikers from Massachusetts have been rescued in the White Mountains, Fish and Game said.

Officials are reminding hikers that winter conditions still grip the mountains, with snow, freezing temperatures and rapidly changing weather.



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