Better safe than sorry: My kid's staying home from school on Election Day
My sixth-grade daughter is staying home on Election Day next Tuesday, Nov. 8.
Not because it’s an historic election, featuring the first female presidential candidate ever, or anything as lofty as I want her to see the election process in action.
I fear for her safety.
On a scale of one to 10, I put this fear at a 3. But her school happens to be one of the more than 200 school polling sites in Maricopa County.
I’m angry that I must consider this action at all.
Therein lies the problem.
Anger. This election has made people angry, and I don’t want to risk any of it spilling onto her — whether it’s physical or just nasty words.
I'm not alone.
School boards in the battleground states of Pennsylvania and Ohio have canceled classes. They join states in Illinois, Maine, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina and Wisconsin who also cut classes because of the threat of violence.
Other schools have closed, fearing a huge and unwieldy turnout.
A USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll found that voters are increasingly nervous about the prospect of Election Day violence.
My husband and I are among the 51 percent of likely voters who have some concern about the possibility of violence at the polls. One in five are "very concerned."
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Our plucky, diverse neighborhood has its share of police action, but we're more concerned about the "watchers" who say they'll be on the lookout for voter fraud. What will such a "watcher" do if they find what they consider fraud?
Our daughter's school is gated. The spokesman for her district said in most schools, the children will be kept separate from the voters.
I'm still angry.
We can't protect her from everything, so we do what we can. She wears her seatbelt, her bike helmet and sunscreen. We spy on her online activity and check her apps. We forbid her to answer the door to strangers or give out personal information.
The list goes on.
Explaining the election to my kids
Adding staying home on Election Day?
Ridiculous.
Let's hope that sometime in the future, we can add Election Day safety to other unfounded parent fears, like rock music leading to Satan worship.
Reach the reporter at sonja.haller@arizonarepublic.com. Follow at twitter.com/sonjahaller.
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