Duval school board meeting erupts after counter-protester’s comments at Tony Ricardo protest

Community members showed up Monday night in protest of Duval County School Board member Tony Ricardo. After one counter protester’s comments, the meeting erupted in chaos, and leaders asked everyone to leave the chambers.

People began yelling “hate speech” after the counter-protester made comments like, “Muslim cockroaches have invaded the holes of our liberty.” That and several other comments caused nearly a dozen people to leave, saying it was hate speech that should not be allowed.

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The man speaking is Edward “Jacob” Lang, a former Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack participant pardoned by President Donald Trump last year. He attended the meeting wearing what looked like a bulletproof vest.

The meeting comes after Ricardo faced calls to resign after he shared a Facebook post that called Islam a political cult. Action News Jax first told you about the controversial post last week. Parts of it read that Islam is not a religion, that the Quran is instructions for jihad, and that Islam is an invasive political cult masquerading as a faith.

Since then, several DCPS, City of Jacksonville, and community leaders have called on him to resign. Monday night, people spoke in support of Ricardo and against him.

“Using social media to disparage people, including Muslim students in your district, is a disgrace,” one speaker said.

“We all have our First Amendment right from the U.S. Constitution. Just because we sit on a school board doesn’t mean we lost that right,” another speaker said.

Several people were escorted out of the meeting. Following the outbursts, DCPS leaders cleared the chambers for a recess and only allowed speakers back inside individually. The public has since been invited back inside.

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