Secular Activist Lady Goes to the Peoria City Council Meeting

You know, I have friends who basically only focus on national and international politics, and sometimes when they share the latest headlines with me, they’re surprised at my ignorance of whatever said headline was. But that’s because I’m HYPER focused on what happens in my own backyard.

I believe we all should be.

So that’s why, this week, I decided to take a detour off the beaten path of school board meeting monitoring to talk about what’s going on with the Peoria City Council. Anyone who reads this Substack knows how deeply I care about public education. I care so deeply, I subject myself to board meetings all across Arizona. 

And folks! It’s not easy, so here’s my ask for help: 

Paying attention to what’s happening at the local level is more important than ever, and it doesn’t get more local than city council and school board meetings. Because you care about separation of church and state — and all the issues that flow from it, like education, equality, discrimination, and more — Secular AZ is committed to keeping you updated, so you can make truly informed decisions. 

But this type of coverage takes resources. We started this Substack just a few months ago, and we already have more than 7,000 subscribers! However (you knew that was coming) only 56 of you pay for a subscription — which leads me to both a huge THANK YOU to our subscribers, and a plea to those who appreciate this work to consider subscribing today.

Your support helps Secular AZ keep standing up for the *constitutionally required* wall of separation between church and state at both the local and state level. 

(And don’t worry folks, I’ll still be writing up a summary of DVUSD’s latest study session as quickly as I can get through that meeting). 

To start, y’all may need some background about what’s been going on in the City of Peoria. 

First, Peoria Unified School District (PUSD) Board Member Heather Rooks and her ilk have been showing up to the Peoria City Council meetings for a while now. When their calls to break the law were rejected by the district and PUSD legal counsel, they began speaking at Peoria City Council meetings to encourage the mayor and city councilors to advocate for bigotry and lawlessness in PUSD.

And last week, the mayor and some of the city councilors seemed to indicate they were down with the sickness when they called for Vice Mayor Denette Dunn’s resignation.

So here’s the Reader’s Digest version. Dunn has a roommate who has a son who has stayed with them intermittently for many years. The roommate’s son is a 60-year-old individual who was arrested 40 years ago in California on a rape charge and is a registered sex offender. 

He registered his vehicle at Dunn’s home address. This is what the Peoria Mayor, Jason Beck, and the rest of the city councilors have cited as grounds for her resignation. 

Except according to her attorney, Tim LaSota, who himself has had some erm…interesting clients…this is in fact NOT serious because Dunn had no idea what her roommate’s son listed as his address (and take the time to read the article all about this because you really can’t make this story up - it even includes the self-immolation of a Peoria resident).

Vice Mayor Dunn has been an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, and according to the article, believes that this letter asking for her resignation is motivated because of her advocacy to that community. 

Seriously, folks, I’ve never seen a group of people more focused on genitalia and the sex lives of others than these evangelical extremists. It’s creepy. But I guess I gotta consider the source material they’re working with: 

Like seriously, how great would it be if elected officials actually worked to solve real problems instead of leaning into their hateful culture wars?

So on the day of the city council meeting, I got wind that the LD29 Republican party put a call out to its members asking that they all show up and spew their hate at the 9.5.23 meeting. 

And at this point, I’m proud to report that this will be a very short edition of our Substack. You know why? BECAUSE Y’ALL SHOWED UP! 

Yeah, sure, there were a couple of folks who were drinking the Haterade, but essentially, the public called out the Mayor and city council members for this contrived witch hunt. Well done, Peoria, and keep it up!

I can’t help but believe that this is an indication that the majority of people have Culture War Fatigue. I mean seriously, the level of outrage that evangelical extremists demand from their base is not sustainable. 

And for those Culture Warriors who read this Substack just to fuel your rage against “Secular Activist Ladies” like me, maybe go touch grass. Play ball with your dog. Listen to your favorite song. Life is too short to be this angry all the time. 

Till next time, Secular Fam. Today was a good day.