After a heated meeting of the Tennessee school board, a father who supported masturing was threatened and harassed.Insider spoke with Michael Miller, who said that he was worried about his safety after a large group of anti-maskers invaded his car.He said, "As I pulled away from the car, my thought was that I would get out of there to make sure that no one was following behind me."10 Things in Politics: Get the latest news in politics and economics Loading... Click Sign up to receive marketing emails and other offers from Insider.After a volatile school board meeting this week, a father of two children in Franklin, Tennessee was threatened and screamed at by an anti-masker crowd.Michael Miller said that he was afraid. "They were running towards me...calling my horrific names."After the Williamson County Board of Education approved Tuesday's temporary mask mandate, chaos erupted at the emergency school board meeting. This was after elementary-school students were required to wear masks.The scene was captured on video. A swarm anti-maskers confronted pro-mask parents in a parking lot, shouting "will not comply" as they demanded more masks.The video shows that Miller was stopped from leaving the parking lot by anti-maskers who hurled threats and expletives at him.Miller was shouted at by one man: "We know who your are." You can go anywhere you want, but we will find and arrest you. Another warned that "You need to be careful."Miller told Insider that he was concerned about his safety because of the large crowd. He said that he entered "flight mode" to escape the horde.He said, "As I pulled away from the car, my thought was that I would get out of there to make sure no one was following behind me."Miller stated that his fears from the previous night had started to subside the next day.He was then sent the video by someone else.He said, "I didn't know how terrible it was." "It makes me feel traumatized every single time I see it."This latest example of a worrying trend in school board meetings is the eruption of passionate parents arguing the merits proven COVID-19 mitigation techniques like vaccines and masks.Miller, a data analyst for the healthcare industry, stated that he and his wife have been in a "world of panic" since the start of the school year. Miller's two children are both under 12 years old, so they are not eligible to get vaccinated.Miller stated that mask-wearing was not required for students in Williamson County's new school year. This led to alarmingly low masking rates among children. The school board held an emergency meeting to amend COVID-19 policies after students began reporting more cases in the first few days.Miller said that he attended the meeting to share facts on masking and to represent parents in the district who felt unsafe due to the increase in COVID-19.He said, "I felt that I had to do more than just being a keyboard warrior."Miller stated that about 100 anti-maskers marched out from the room and threatened board members when it became apparent that the board would vote for a temporary mask mandate for elementary-school students.He said, "The look of fearful terror on some board members' faces I can't explain it." "I felt that I had to remain in solidarity."Miller stated that the outside chanting became louder as the meeting progressed. Miller decided to leave after seeing a deputy sheriff enter the room in a bulletproof vest. Miller asked the sheriff to escort him to his car.He walked out of the building carrying an officer beside him and was immediately met by an angry crowd.He said, "It was instant." "They saw my mask, so it was obvious that they were looking for me."Miller stated that he was only thinking about returning home to his family as he struggled to move through the crowd. Protesters threatened him with F-bombs.The following day, the school board issued a statement:"Our district's success has been due to the passion of our parents for their children's education. There is no reason to be rude. More than 40,000 students are served by our school and we employ over 5,000 employees. Families and staff come from many different backgrounds and opinions. It is vital that everyone in the district has an opportunity to be heard and respected. We will work to ensure that all voices are heard, and that everyone feels safe sharing their opinions with staff and families.Miller stated that he is still in disbelief and concern three days later."This is a meeting of the school board. He said, "I thought there might be some heated discussion inside the room." "But it was amplified to one million outside in the parking lot."
