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A Kennebunk, Maine, town official has stepped down from her liaison role with the local school board after facing backlash for suggesting that critics of a transgender athlete policy have “pedophilic tendencies.”
Vice Chair Leslie Trentalange, who serves on the Kennebunk Select Board, made the comments during an Oct. 20 Regional School Unit(RSU) 21 meeting that focused on the district’s transgender-student athlete policy. The policy, consistent with state law, allows students to join sports teams and use facilities matching their gender identity.
Parents and community members across Maine have protested similar policies, arguing they violate Title IX protections.
Trentalange, who said she was speaking as a “concerned community member,” told the board that “the majority in this district knows that all students are welcome.” She went on to say that opponents of the transgender policy have “creepy obsessions” and have “made hate their only hobby.”
A Maine town Select Board member and school board liaison scolded critics of the district’s transgender policy. (Alejandra Villa Loarca/Newsday RM via Getty Images)
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She added that “their obsession with what is sitting in between the private parts of our students is nothing less than creepy and should absolutely be raising eyebrows in and around our school district.”
“Their obsession with genitalia points not to caring for the students in this district, but perhaps toward an underlying guilt for their own pedophilic tendencies,” she continued. “There is a registry for that.”
Her remarks drew gasps from those in attendance and a quick response from RSU 21 School Board Chair Matthew Stratford, who called her comments “inappropriate.”
“I don’t think that was inappropriate, and I stand by my comments,” Trentalange responded.
Transgender athlete supporters hold up signs as an overflow crowd converges outside the Riverside Unified School District meeting, Dec. 19, 2024. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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Her remarks sparked backlash from some in the community, prompting letters to the Kennebunk Select Board and calls for accountability on social media.
At an Oct. 28 Select Board meeting, John Salamone, a Republican candidate for Maine Senate District 31, accused Trentalange of violating the town’s code of conduct and urged her censure.
“When an elected official uses her platform to publicly slander citizens, she undermines the integrity of this board and erodes public trust in local government,” Salamone said. He called for her removal as liaison to RSU 21 and for a public apology.
Some residents echoed his criticism, while others argued that Trentalange’s comments were protected under state law and the First Amendment. Former RSU 21 Board member Lesley Stoeffler said, “Ms. Trentalange does not owe anyone an apology.”
Other residents and board members, speaking as private citizens, defended her right to free speech.
Leslie Trentalange refused to apologize for remarks at school board meeting about transgender athlete policy critics. (Town of Kennebunk Select Board Meeting Screenshot/ANDREJ IVANOV/AFP via Getty Images)
“Vote them out, that is how democracy works,” Karen Plattes said in response to calls for punitive action. “Stifling free speech is not the way. And that doesn’t matter what side you are on.”
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“I personally feel that Leslie had 100% the right and the freedom of speech to say what she feels about any topic, just like any of us do, and I will always support my fellow board members,” Kortney Nedeau said. “I just know that as an elected official, for me, it is an ethical decision to never cross that line.”
During the same meeting, Trentalange acknowledged that her remarks may have “pushed some boundaries” but stood by them. She declined to apologize to those she criticized and instead expressed regret toward the “queer community.”
“If there are folks in the marginalized, queer community who feel my message did not serve them or hurt them in any way, it is that which I regret,” she said. “I do also regret any undue or undeserved backlash other members of the Select Board or town staff have felt over my comments as an individual.”
Trentalange said she would step down as liaison to the school board to avoid any “confusion” over her role with the school district when attending meetings. She remains vice chair of the Kennebunk Select Board.
President Donald Trump signs an executive order barring transgender female athletes from competing in women’s or girls’ sporting events, in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
RSU 21, Trentalange, and the Select Board did not return Digital’s request for comment.
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In an Oct. 27 statement posted to Facebook, Stratford said the district’s transgender policy complies with the Maine Human Rights Act and will not be revisited this school year. He urged civility at future meetings and reminded residents that there is “no place for harassment, discriminatory language, or disrespectful words” during public comment.
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