3 Threats In 4 School Days At Red Oak School After Libs Of TikTok Post

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — The local elementary school that began receiving bomb threats last week after it was featured by prominent a right-wing social media account was the subject of another threat on Tuesday morning. The third threat, unlike the first two, did not prompt administrators to relocate students to another location.

Red Oak Elementary School in Highland Park was evacuated on Thursday and again on Friday due to emailed threats, according to police and North Shore School District 112 officials. Searches with police and bomb-sniffing dogs determined there was no credible threat in either case.

On Tuesday morning, staff at federal government office in Chicago and a local news outlet both received a threatening email that said, "Evacuate Red Oak Elementary," without mentioning which Red Oak, Superintendent Mike Lubelfeld said in a message to the community.

"As a result of Friday’s experience, we took additional precautions at Red Oak School over the weekend and this morning in preparation for school and in case another threat came in," Lubelfeld said Tuesday morning. "Today’s threat is not directed at our school or Highland Park - it is vague and indirect."

Highland Park police and district staff searched the interior and the exterior of Red Oak on Thursday morning, the superintendent said, and administrators are confident in running schools with normal operations after following guidance from the Department of Homeland Security and other precautions.

"Based on the information we have received and our experiences since last Thursday, we are confident that we are not at risk or danger today," he said. "We remain vigilant and heightened daily at all school campuses."

City staff said police have increased patrols and visits to all Highland Park schools in response to the pattern of threats, which all began after a photo showing a rainbow flag in an Red Oak Elementary School classroom was posted by the social media account Libs of TikTok on Sept. 15.

"Why would Red Oak elementary school (Highland Park, IL) have a massive progress pride flag hanging above students’ heads all day?" it said.

Founded by Brooklyn real estate agent Chaya Raichik, the influential anti-LGBT account has 2.5 million followers on the website formerly known as Twitter and more than 400,000 on Instagram. Organizations and institutions the account has posted about critically have repeatedly received unfounded bomb threats.

The first threat to Red Oak School came less than a week after Raichik's account questioned the flag in the classroom. Highland Park police first got word of an emailed threat from a local news organization around 7:30 a.m. on Thursday morning.

"Subsequent investigation indicates that similar emails threatening other public buildings across the country were sent to a number of organizations nationwide within the same timeframe," city staff said in a statement that afternoon.

"Given that these threats were sent to a number of organizations simultaneously, at this time no definitive motivation can be established," it said.

On Friday, it was an out-of-state law enforcement agency that notified Highland Park police of the threat, this time referencing a bomb threat targeting "Red Oak School," without specifying if it was the one in Highland Park, city and district officials said.

"Although the September 22 threat was not specific to Red Oak School, Highland Park, Illinois, the partner agency shared the threat out of an abundance of caution," staff announced. "As with the bomb threat on September 21, three other entities received a bomb threat pertaining to Red Oak School. This remains an active, ongoing investigation."

Police said they are working with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to investigate the "nationwide surge in bomb threats and other threats over the last several months."

Lubelfeld said comfort dogs are on hand at Red Oak on Tuesday to provide emotional support to students and staff.

"Your child’s safety, security, mental health," he said, "and our staff's safety, security, and mental health are our top priorities. "

Top elected and appointed officials of the city of Highland Park and both of its school district released a joint statement Tuesday afternoon about the series of bomb threats.

"Although investigations into each threat have revealed them to be non-credible, they are no less frightening because they target our most precious constituents: our children," said Mayor Nancy Rotering, City Manager Ghida Neukirch, District 113 President Dan Struck, District 113 Superintendent Bruce Law, District 112 President Dan Struck and Lubelfeld, its superintendent.

The FBI reported that the number of threats to schools increased by 60 percent from 2021 to 2022, according to the joint statement from city and school district leadership.

"We take each and every threat seriously. We also know that our response sets an example for our community," they said. "It is our hope that each of you has felt safer knowing the multiple precautions that have been taken, from talking openly about these non-credible threats to conducting building searches with bomb-detecting dogs to increasing patrols by Highland Park police and enhancing public safety measures at schools throughout our community."

Earlier: Bomb Threat Leads To Evacuation Of Highland Park School For Second Day In A Row