The head of Oklahoma's Board of Education rejoices after a local elementary school principal resigned following hate-induced bomb threats

Ryan Walters, Republican candidate for state superintendent of public instruction, gestures to the crowd during a Republican watch party Nov. 8, 2022, in Oklahoma City.

Sue Ogrocki/AP Photo

• The head of Oklahoma's Board of Education celebrated a local school principal's resignation.
• The former principal resigned after they and the school received bomb threats.
• The bomb threats arose after the "LibsOfTikTok" account shared the principal's time as a drag queen.

The head of Oklahoma's Board of Education celebrated the departure of a local elementary school principal who resigned recently after their school received hate-induced bomb threats.

The Western Heights School District board accepted the resignation of Shane Murnan, the former principal at John Glenn Elementary School, on Monday — a little over five months after beginning the position.

Shortly after starting his new role, the right-wing and anti-LGBT social media account "Libs of TikTok" posted evidence of Murnan performing outside of work as a drag queen, tagging Western Heights Public Schools Superintendent Brayden Savage in the process.

As NBC News reported, publicizing Murnan's hobby quickly led to Murnan and the school district receiving bomb threats, leading to Murnan's voluntary departure.

"I'm a very professional person — I've worked really hard," Murnan told NBC. "I've gone to school. I got my bachelor's, my master's, my doctorate — I have been devoted to education, trying to make it a better thing. But they've destroyed me, and I don't know where I'm going or what I'm doing now. This has been a nightmare."

Days after NBC News published its report on Murnan's resignation, Ryan Walters, Oklahoma's superintendent of public instruction who's been a strong advocate against anything related to the LGBT community in education, shared the story in apparent celebration on X.

"Drag queens do not belong in Oklahoma schools," Walters tweeted. "Zero tolerance."

Walters' celebratory tweet on Wednesday wasn't the first time he's weighed in online about Murnan's resignation. Earlier in February, he rejoiced after learning the principal was leaving their post.

"It's a great day for Oklahoma schools," he said in a video. "Big win today: The drag queen is out at Western Heights. I've demanded it from day one. This individual shouldn't be in a school. You should not be working with young kids."

In January, several months after the Libs of TikTok account published evidence of Murnan in drag while imploring Walters to do something, Walters tapped the account's founder, Chaya Raichik, to the state's library advisory committee.

Responding to a post online on Wednesday about Murnan's reported resignation saying they were "forced to resign under pressure", Raichik said, "Cry harder."

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