Even though it’s the common notion that with great power comes an even greater responsibility, we tend to forget that the power to lead can also be the power to mislead. An example of the misuse of power would be the vice president of the CVUSD Board of Education, Andrew Cruz, abuse of public forum by not keeping a non-biased stance about certain groups of the community.

On July 16, 2015, Cruz first made a remark in regards to the LGBT community, by saying that “It is stated upon our constitution and sealed in our hearts, that a union between one man and one woman, to the exclusion of all others, so that children may know and may be raised by their biological parents” and that the “gender of parents matter.” Then he continues to speak about abortion and how children should not be given to unrelated people, claiming that would be an “intrinsic journey” that children must go through. These comments were a slap to the face for the unwed and LGBT groups that are a part of our community.

He then adds to the single parent dilemma by laying out some statistics on the table, and suggested that the problem with our society is the “implosion of black families” and single parent households. He even takes it to the next level by totally disregarding race as a factor to the Charleston Massacre, and instead suggested that the cause of the shooting was because they were Christian worshippers. This is rather ignorant to believe, since the murderer was openly a white supremacist.

As the icing on the cake, Cruz then commenced to speak out about mandated vaccinations, accusing undocumented immigrants coming through the borders of Mexico of bringing “diseases like Dinky Fever, TB, Swine Flu, Measles, and possibly Ebola.” Once again, Cruz, in his infinite wisdom, neglected to research that these Latin American countries actually require mothers to vaccinate their children for a lot of these diseases, making his statement incorrect. After Cruz said these comments, a current Don Lugo Junior, Ronaldo Angulo, was enraged enough to attend the board meeting that was on October 15, to publicly voice his opinions of Cruz not being non-biased.

At the meeting, Angulo writing and rewriting his speech, so he can flawlessly deliver his message to both Cruz and the board. I watched him speak his mind from the TV in the crowded waiting room and he silenced everyone in the building with his words. We all were shocked by the audacity of Cruz but even more shocked by just how passionately Angulo was defending those who Cruz had ridiculed.

In his speech, Angulo said that if Cruz could not be non-biased, then he should do the community a favor and “step down” from his position and not be a part of the CVUSD Board Of Education. I agree with Angulo, because the issue is not about having conservative beliefs, but voicing those beliefs to the public when you are supposed to keep an open mind to the community and the diversity it has. For Angulo, he took Cruz’s comments personally, by stating “It definitely hits close to home for me because I am included in many of the groups that he and the district are against, but I am far more concerned about the rights of anyone who doesn’t fit his perfect mold.”