Conejo Valley: Understanding Right-Wing Radicalism in Thousand Oaks

​The updating of our district’s sex ed curriculum to be in compliance with the State’s California Healthy Youth Act (CHYA) concluded at last night’s board meeting, with a 5-0 vote to move forward with the “Teen Talk” curriculum — but, it was not a quiet evening.

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In one of the most vitriolic board meetings since those surrounding the FAIR Act in 2017 and literature censorship policies in 2018, members of “Conservative Moms of Conejo Valley” and a group known as “California Parent Alliance,” led by Tim Cooley, showed up to denounce the curriculum, heckle district staff, accuse board members of being sexual predators, liken them to Hitler, and insult the children of board members. They screamed about wearing masks. They screamed over the newly updated dress code policy, in which girls can *GASP* now show their shoulders (oh, the indecency of it all). They screamed that the curriculum wasn’t within “biblical context.” One speaker stated that this curriculum would lead to girls selling their bodies for hamburgers. Not making that one up. One speaker screamed at the board that they “failed us” and asked to be explained the difference between vaginal and anal lubrication. (Kind of sounds like she needs both, if I’m being honest.) Another speaker yelled to the board that they’re all snakes and told board president Fitzgerald to take the gavel and shove it in her mouth. (Is that code for the kind of kink this commenter likes in the bedroom or … ?)
 
I know what you’re thinking: NO WAY DID THIS HAPPEN. It happened, and it happened publicly, my friends. Once, this behavior dominated secret and private online groups where it was closed off from the public eye. Now, those aligned with this group are so far up Cooley’s unlubricated asshole that they’ve been convinced this was going to be a good look for them.
 
If you want to experience all of the public comments, knock yourself and watch the recorded meeting, HERE. For comments specific to the curriculum conversation, you’ll want to click on item N on the agenda. Or, you can get the basic taste from The Acorn’s reporter, Dawn Megli, who live tweets each meeting. You can catch her thread of tweets capturing the meeting, HERE.  Below is a SMALL snippet of them.

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Now, not surprisingly, a lot of people watching the meeting last night or following along with the reporting is feeling a heavy dose of “what in the actual fuck” this morning. This can’t be our community, people are messaging. Are our neighbors really this hateful? How many people like this live among us and treat people this way? These are the questions coming into my inbox. And, I think it’s time for a reminder blog on our local political environment here in the Conejo Valley.
 
All community have their fringe extremists groups — we happen to be blessed with a few of them, all of which are extremely vocal and give the impression that they dominate our community sentiment and mindset. This is not true. Our recent local elections indicate that these views do not represent the collective community … but that does not mean they are to be dismissed. The groups and individuals work together, fundraise together, and have literally no bottom when it comes to a desire to win.
 
You’re gonna need to dive into some of my older blogs that draw a lot of connections between the players and organizations in this area. And, I'm going to be honest with you ... these aren't like "here's everything you need to know in 30 seconds or less" blogs. THEY ARE DENSE. Get yourself a beverage and a cozy chair.
 
1)The Rob McCoy and Sandee Everett Playbook — Why it Matters 
So, this blog is a bit outdated in the sense that it was written prior to the 2020 election, at a time when Sandee Everett was a current board member running for re-election. She lost her re-election bid. However, this blog is about more than just Sandee, and really outlines how these groups and individuals operate and what their agenda is. While Everett is no longer on the school board, she remains a highly active voice in Conservative Moms of Conejo Valley and is pushing for the group to mobilize and collect signatures to force a costly special election for board member Fitzgerald’s vacant seat.
 
2) Pastor – er – Mayor Pastor Rob
This blog will give you an idea of some of the political activism taking place from Godspeak’s pulpit and leader, Rob McCoy. It also briefly dives into the American Renewal Project and how that plays a role here, locally, in the way groups operate.
 
3) The Line 
This one’s back from 2018 but gives some major background context. Interestingly enough, it covers “Unified Conejo” which, from all public perspective, appears defunct … that being said, its core members are now those operating within California Parent Alliance and Conservative Moms of Conejo Valley groups, so it’s pertinent.

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Now is the time to start getting educated and informed ... want to know who's already preparing for the elections next year? THESE PEOPLE AND THESE GROUPS. If you want to ensure that we continue to elect good governance-focused leaders who will make responsible decisions for the community, you're gonna need to be ready to help impact decisions next year.