Today I attended the Petaluma Supervisor debate hosted at the Polly Klaas Community Theater, a Theater built upon the responsibilities of local leaders in protecting vulnerable children.
Following the debate, I asked Petaluma City Schools Trustee & D2 Candidate for County Supervisor Joanna Paun a direct question about why she has not publicly advocated for the more than 40 undocumented Latino boys who were raped and trafficked by the former Boys & Girls Club athletic director in her own community. Instead of addressing the question, Paun laughed while I was speaking, which only underscored the dismissiveness survivors and advocates have been facing for years.
As I continued raising the issue, one of Paun’s supporters confronted me aggressively. His behavior escalated to the point that I felt physically unsafe. Paun did nothing to intervene or de‑escalate the situation, even though it occurred in a public forum she was participating in. After the incident, I filed a police report documenting the assault and the circumstances surrounding it.
I attended this debate to speak up for children whose voices have been ignored, and to hold public officials accountable for their responses to one of the largest child abuse cases in Sonoma County history. What happened today only reinforced how urgently this community needs transparency, accountability, and leaders who take the safety of all children seriously.
“No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue that rises against you in judgment you shall condemn.” — Isaiah 54:17
