A California women’s sports advocate and candidate for office says organizers cleared the audience from a school board candidate forum after a dispute over her "Save Girls Sports" shirt.
asserted
organizers → say → shirt
Shannon Kessler, the Republican candidate for California’s 30th Assembly District and founder of Save Girls Sports Central Coast, told OutKick she was instructed to cover the shirt at a Sept. 21 forum for Lucia Mar Unified School District trustee candidates in Arroyo Grande.
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she → tell → Grande
The shirt also carried her name and Assembly campaign information on the back, Kessler acknowledged.
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Kessler → carry → back
She said she offered to cover that portion before eventually agreeing to conceal the front as well.
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she → say → front
The League of Women Voters of San Luis Obispo County hosted the forum with the American Association of University Women’s 5 Cities Pismo Beach Branch.
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League → host → Branch
Footage shows the host of the forum announcing a "violation," before instructing everyone to leave.
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host → show → everyone
"From this point on, this forum has been cancelled, because of that violation, we can not proceed," he said, as seen in footage provided by Kessler.
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he → cancel → Kessler
"We will ask you to leave now, yes, due to the violation.
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We → ask → violation
The violation that there are not to be any slogans, no campaign slogans in the forum, we can not continue."
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we → be → forum
The candidate forum continued without an audience, with participants answering previously submitted written questions on camera.
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participants → continue → camera
The event was held at Arroyo Grande High School, rather than being a regular school board meeting.
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event → hold → School
Kessler said the confrontation began when she entered wearing the shirt and was told its message violated the event’s rules.
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message → say → rules
"It’s just a women’s rights shirt," she said.
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she → ’ → ?
She said organizers suggested she turn the shirt inside out in a bathroom, but she initially refused.
uncertain
she → say → bathroom
Kessler argued that the slogan reflected her advocacy against transgender athletes competing in girls’ sports and was not specific to her Assembly campaign.
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slogan → argue → campaign
Kessler said she then offered to borrow a jacket to cover the campaign information on the back.
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she → say → back
They said I had to cover Save Girls Sports, that message," she said.
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she → say → Sports
According to Kessler, a woman she described as a League leader then told her the front needed to be covered because it carried an "anti-trans hateful message.
uncertain
it → accord → message
"
"I cannot control how you perceive it, but I don’t mean it that way," Kessler said she responded.
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she → control → it
Kessler did not identify that organizer by name in the interview.
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Kessler → identify → interview
She also alleged that the rules were enforced differently against other attendees.
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rules → allege → attendees
Kessler said a person wearing a "Trans kids belong" shirt and attendees wearing other candidates’ campaign information were not asked to cover their clothing.
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attendees → say → clothing
"I don’t have a problem with him wearing that shirt," she said of the attendee displaying the transgender advocacy message.
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she → have → message
"Once again, I feel that he has the right to carry that message."
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he → feel → message
The League’s published forum rules prohibit campaign signs, banners, buttons, clothing and literature inside the forum room.
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rules → publish → room
Its website allows campaign materials in a designated area outside the room and says organizers can refuse entry to attendees wearing clothing considered political or disruptive.
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organizers → allow → clothing
Kessler said companions wearing Save Girls Sports shirts were also instructed to cover them or turn them inside out.
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companions → say → them
She said organizers threatened to call police if they did not comply.
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they → say → police
Arroyo Grande police records list a disturbance-of-the-peace call at the high school’s address at 6:07 p.m. Sept. 21.
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records → list → p.m.
The public log does not explain the underlying dispute or what action officers took.
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officers → explain → action
Kessler said police never entered to remove her.
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police → say → her
Instead, organizers dismissed the audience.
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organizers → dismiss → audience
Footage provided by Kessler shows an exchange with a staffer about the shirt and audience members leaving the room.
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members → provide → room
Kessler said she ultimately covered the shirt with a borrowed jacket, had the signs taken away and put a campaign-branded water bottle in her purse after trustee Colleen Martin raised an objection to it.
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Martin → say → it
"I had finally said, okay, look, if you’re going to eject everyone, I’ll cover the shirt.
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I → say → shirt
And they still canceled the meeting," she said.
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she → cancel → meeting
Kessler described the episode as discriminatory.
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Kessler → describe → episode
"I feel like it was viewpoint discrimination and against my First Amendment rights," she said.
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she → feel → rights
The dispute follows a prolonged local debate over transgender students’ participation in girls’ sports and access to locker rooms.
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dispute → follow → rooms
OutKick reached out to the League of Women Voters of San Luis Obispo County; AAUW Five Cities–Pismo Beach branch President Jean Burns Slater; Lucia Mar School District communications representative Amy Jacobs; school board Vice President Colleen Martin; and the Arroyo Grande Police Department for comment.
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OutKick → reach → comment
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
