Is it freedom of speech or safety risk? White Settlement parents confront lone protester

A man holding signs outside of White Settlement ISD schools has sparked outrage among parents concerned for the safety of their students.

For the last two years, White Settlement resident Scott Evans said he’s protested the school district for allegedly violating his freedom of speech after he publicly protested against a school district employee in 2021.

“From all the things they’ve done to me, violating my freedom of speech, obviously they don’t like it,” he said. “And I’m going to let the world know they don’t like it.”

Evans is careful to not stand anywhere he is not supposed to be. He has also been active in local politics, previously filing to run for White Settlement City Council in 2020, according to candidate filing records.

The signs have ranged from political messaging against bonds to one of his latest signs which reads “White Settlement ISD Hates Freedom of Speech” with images of women in small bikinis at the beach and men in swim briefs kissing.

The latest signs have created a stir among White Settlement community groups on Facebook and parents have confronted Evans, the school district and White Settlement ISD police department about the protests.

One parent, Carmen Deleon, said parents’ main concern is for the safety of their students.

“My main concern is my child going to school and we don’t know what state of mind he’s in and, with everything else going around, we don’t know what this guy’s capable of,” she said.

Deleon said she and other parents have a plan to keep their students out of school on a day he’s staged outside of a school.

Another parent, Casey Harmon, said the images on Evans’ latest signs could encourage bullying in the schools.

In early April, she took one of Evans’ signs and spray painted it black with the words “Ignore Haters, Stay Kind” in white. Harmon later staged a lone counter protest holding out the redone sign.

“I’m sure it’s having an affect on the kids and that’s my beef with it, is just how it’s negatively affecting their mentality and their self-esteem,” Harmon said.

Although parents have taken their issues with Evans to the school district and police, Evans does not stage his protest on school property or in roadways and is within his First Amendment rights.

Harmon said Evans, who tends to stage a 30 minute protest around drop off time, does not seem to have a particular pattern for which campuses he stages his protests from. He parks his car to the side and sticks to the sidewalk by the drop off line, Harmon said.

“It seems like he knows exactly what to do to stay just under the radar,” she said.

In a statement from White Settlement ISD, a spokesperson said the district received multiple calls and concerns from parents regarding Evans.

“[White Settlement ISD] police officers are closely monitoring and responding to every situation. Because the individual is not on school property and not violating the law, the district is unable to take enforcement action,” the spokesperson said in the statement. “Our school police and campus staff have safety plans and protocols in place, and the WSISD Police Department continues to work with the Fort Worth and White Settlement Police Departments to prioritize the safety of our students, staff and families.”

Evans said he stages his lone protest outside of White Settlement ISD schools to bring the fight to the institution he has an issue with — the school district.

“If you’re going to have a political sign that says that ‘These people don’t like freedom of speech’ then you go to where those people are,” he said. “You don’t go to somewhere else to hold a sign.”

For his latest posters and banners, Evans said he pulled images off the Internet and does not know the people in the photos. He said the purpose of the images is to draw attention to his signs’ messages.

Evans said his protest is about the school district restricting his freedom of speech and for allegedly ignoring his complaints against a security guard who he said damaged his vehicle after an altercation.

The end goal of his protests is for the school district to leave him alone, Evans said.

In April, he said he filed a lawsuit against the school district for violating his First Amendment rights. Evans said the results of the lawsuit will give him the closure he needs, potentially bringing an end to the protests.