It was a case that turned a small rural town in Wisconsin into a nationwide symbol in America’s culture war: In the spring of 2022, three middle school students in Kiel were accused of bullying a trans classmate by refusing to use her preferred pronouns. The school district subsequently initiated a legally mandated Title IX investigation - a process that was supposed to take place behind closed doors. But what began as an internal school procedure quickly became a projection surface for right-wing outrage politics.
Rose Rabidoux, the mother of one of the accused students, went public in coordination with the ultra-conservative lobby group Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL) and the far-right online platform "Libs of TikTok." The previously confidential investigation turned into a rallying cry for a heated campaign against so-called “gender ideology” in schools. The consequences were dramatic: bomb threats, school closures, canceled events, and a climate of fear - not for the perpetrators, but for the entire school system. The Kiel Area School District and its staff were subjected to a wave of politically motivated attacks that had nothing to do with the original incident.
Amid this orchestrated culture war, Oliver Kornetzke spoke out - a resident of Kiel who now also writes for the Kaizen Blog and is known nationwide as a columnist. In a widely read letter to the editor published in the “Tri-County News,” Kornetzke sharply analyzed the events: It was not the school district that was to blame for the escalation, but rather the deliberate media scandalization by Rabidoux, WILL, and right-wing activists like Katie Wimmler from the Tri-County Citizens. Not only did they demand an “independent investigation,” they also suggested terminating Superintendent Dr. Brad Ebert’s contract. Kornetzke called these attempts to politically eliminate a liberal education expert “monumental hypocrisy” - driven by those who claimed to protect the well-being of children while in reality building a culture of fear and ideological control. Facebook responded to the piece - which was discussed nationwide - by permanently banning his account, a decision Kornetzke publicly denounced.
Kornetzke’s clear words - against political intimidation, for fact-based clarification - stand as a symbol of resistance against a new wave of right-wing school policy in the United States. He is not interested in party politics, but in morality, humanity, and truth. When he writes today for investigative platforms and critical media, it is always with the goal of tearing off the mask of right-wing “parental rights” movements - and showing that behind many of these campaigns there is no concern, but a desire to destroy. A desire aimed at queer youth, comprehensive education, and democratic public life. Oliver Kornetzke remains: outspoken, clear, uncomfortable - and essential.
English 
German 
