Protesters are planning to gather at the Oklahoma state Capitol to call for the impeachment of state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters.
The demonstration set for Saturday, Aug. 9, comes as the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office investigates claims that images of naked women were visible on a TV screen in Walters’ office.
As of early Tuesday, Aug. 5, nearly 13,000 people on Facebook had indicated their interest in attending the rally.
Walters has repeatedly denied responsibility for the TV and described the situation as a “political attack.”
In response to the planned demonstration, Walters said impeachment already has been attempted under former Oklahoma Speaker of the House Charles McCall, a Republican from Atoka, who’s running for governor.
“The Democrats and teachers union sympathizers know that we are breaking down a bureaucracy, dismantling status quo and returning education back to Oklahoma parents,” Walters said in a statement.
Walters has been at the center of controversy since two members of the Oklahoma State Board of Education, which Walters chairs, told The Oklahoman they saw the content during an executive session on Thursday, July 24.
“I saw them just walking across the screen, and I’m like, ‘no,'” said board member Becky Carson. “I’m sorry I even have to use this language, but I’m like, ‘Those are her nipples.’ And then I’m like, ‘That’s pubic hair.’ What in the world am I watching? I didn’t watch a second longer. … I was so disturbed by it, I was like, ‘What is on your TV?’ I was very stern, like I’d been a mother or a classroom teacher. And I said, ‘What am I watching? Turn it off now!’”
More: Emails show complaint by state education board member over images of naked women
The impeachment rally is being organized by the Sooner State Party, a group that says it is working to “bring common sense government to all.”
CJ Webber-Neal, who described himself as a spokesman for the group, told The Oklahoman that the party is encouraging Oklahomans to voice their disapproval of Walters’ leadership at the Oklahoma State Department of Education.
“This isn’t an issue that is partisan, he said. “I don’t think that our children’s future should be partisan. It’s something that affects every Oklahoman.”
Webber-Neal said it wasn’t the TV incident that sparked the Sooner State Party’s call for impeachment; it was the state’s next-to-last-place education ranking. He also cited accusations of ethics violations in Walters’ 2022 campaign, being blamed for misspending pandemic relief funds and backing a conservative online private school.
“We realize that students right now need leadership, and they don’t need political grandstanding,” Webber-Neal said. “They don’t need someone basically trying to boost their own ego. What they need is someone who’s going to lead.”
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Protesters will call for Ryan Walters’ impeachment this weekend
