Chicago Dad Placed on Watchlist After Opposing Pornography in Schools
February 16 | Posted by mrossol | 1st Amendment, Deep State, FBI, Losing Freedom, The LeftFeb. 17, 2023, The Epoch Times
Source: Chicago Dad Placed on Watchlist After Opposing Pornography in Schools
A Chicago father has learned that he has been placed on a flight watchlist after opposing pornographic materials in his kids’ schools.
Over the summer of 2021, Terry Newsome—who described himself in comments to the Epoch Times as a “lifelong Democrat” until recently—was one of several parents in the 99th school district of Downer’s Grove, Chicago, who expressed opposition to books in his children’s library that had sexually explicit and pornographic content.
In December, Newsome discovered he had been placed on a watchlist.
On Dec. 16, 2022, he and his family attempted to board a plane en route to Turning Point USA’s “America Fest” convention in Phoenix, Arizona.
Newsome, who travels a great deal for work, was shocked to learn that he had been placed on a watchlist and had to get substantially more screening before being allowed to board, causing him to miss his original flight.
Initially, Newsome was told that he had been placed on the list by the FBI. On his return journey from Phoenix, he was informed that the classification originated from the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Despite having been a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) pre-check-approved flier for over a decade, upon his family’s arrival at O’Hare International Airport, Newsome learned about the new designation.
Upon arriving at the airport, Newsome’s family found that they “couldn’t check in electronically like we normally did.” Initially, Newsome and his wife just chalked it up to the fact that they had minors traveling with them that were not their children.
It was only later that Newsome learned he had been given the dreaded “quad-S” designation on his ticket, an acronym standing for Secondary Security Screening Selection (SSSS).
Compared to the normal security guidelines for boarding, those with boarding passes marked SSSS must get far more screening.
SSSS boarding pass holders are traditionally removed from the line and brought elsewhere for additional screening. This screening is nothing if not thorough—passengers are asked to remove all items from their bags, which are then examined individually while the bag is thoroughly searched.
When he got to the airport, Newsome had no idea that he had been flagged with the SSSS designation.
FBI Dismisses FOIA Request
The FBI refused to discuss details with Newsome.
Additionally, Newsome also reached out to the TSA.
Opposition to Porn in School Library
Two days after the publication of an Epoch Times article about his activism, Newsome found threatening messages against him on a locally run Twitter account called Antifascist Rumor Mill.
“Action items announced soon in regard to Terry Newsome—time to Drop Pops and his hateful agenda,” the tweet read, referencing Newsome’s nickname “Pops.”
“Terry trying to make a name for himself, look at his stupid face in the Epoch Times, the extreme #disinformation rag that echoed all the lies, the Big Lie, the ‘Plandemic’ lie, etc.,” another tweet from the account said.
Newsome told The Epoch Times that many of those who have spoken against him and threatened him, including members of the school board, are in close league with Rep. Casten.
“The school board and the superintendent are all controlled by radical, radical leftists … that are very vocal in the Downers Grove Community and all supportive of Sean Casten,” Newsome said. “So anybody that speaks out with a different opinion is brutally attacked on social media and called racist, homophobic, and so forth, no matter the truth.”
“To make a point, I’ve said it from the very beginning, through now: me and the other parents are not anti-gay or homophobic—we’re anti-porn,” Newsome said.
January 6 Rally
Some of Newsome’s critics have in the past pointed out that Newsome was present at the Jan. 6, 2021, “Stop the Steal” rally.
Newsome candidly admits that he attended the rally, but said that he had no bad intentions and broke no laws that day.
“I went to January 6, with my friend, a retired police officer,” Newsome said.
According to Newsome, the FBI previously investigated his friend who attended the event, a retired Cook County police officer, and had cleared him of any wrongdoing.
Newsome was totally unarmed that day.
Additionally, Newsome was undergoing immunotherapy for cancer at the time, leaving him in a weakened state.
Newsome said his only reason for attending the rally was to hear President Donald Trump speak and to ensure people were safe.
“We went down there for two things, one to see our president speak. Two, because we’re both still big guys even though we’re older,” Newsome said. “We saw in November, December, families, parents overly attacked by Antifa [and] BLM in front of their hotels.”
Newsome said he had left by the time order broke down at the rally, which he vindicated by providing time-stamped photos. Newsome’s photos and time stamps from that day show that he did not trespass on Capitol grounds and was gone before the Capitol breach began.
Concerns of ‘Weaponization’ Of DOJ
Newsome’s story comes amid concerns over the weaponization of the DOJ.
In November, House Republicans unveiled a 1,050-page report detailing whistleblower findings.
Since then, the party has authorized the creation of the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, which held its inaugural hearing on Feb. 9.
In his opening remarks, Weaponization Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) read out a litany of findings from whistleblower testimony.
For instance, on Nov. 18, 2021, Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee were told that the FBI had created a “threat tag” for parents voicing their concerns at school board meetings. In May 2022, another whistleblower revealed that dozens of parents designated with a “threat tag” were being investigated by the agency.
The same whistleblower said that the leadership of the FBI is “rotted at its core.” Following this, that whistleblower had his security clearance revoked and was suspended from the FBI.
In April 2022, another whistleblower told Republicans that FBI agents “were being run out of the bureau” for attending conservative political events while off duty.
Jordan also cited whistleblower testimony previously included in the whistleblower report that claimed that the FBI had manufactured domestic violent extremism events (DVEs) to hit “self-created performance metrics.” Additional testimony in September 2022 revealed that Jan. 6 case files had been altered to make it appear that DVEs were on the rise, as Democrats and President Joe Biden have long claimed. The agent was later suspended.
In September 2022, yet another whistleblower revealed to Republicans that the FBI views the Betsy Ross flag, the original design of the American flag with 13 stars, “as a terrorist symbol.”
Additional testimony found that the FBI accepts personal data on users from Facebook “without the user’s consent.”
Cara Ding contributed to this report.
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