The Justice Department’s decision to step in and offer various stakeholders “dedicated lines of communication for threat reporting, assessment and response by law enforcement” in the wake of atrocious adult behavior at some local school board meetings has education reformers looking for alternatives to calling Uncle Sam for help.

As Neal McCluskey writes, one way to ease the confrontations, and lower the perceived stakes is old standby: educational choice…

Single, government‐​run districts and schools force people with diverse backgrounds and beliefs into zero‐​sum political combat to determine whose children will get what their families think they need, and whose will not. Public schooling forces neighbor to battle neighbor, with nothing less than their children’s minds at stake.

The solution is to embrace the foundational American value: liberty. Instead of requiring people to fund government institutions, let money follow children to schools or other educational arrangements their families choose. Instead of forcing a war of all against all, let those who want critical race theory select schools that teach it, others pick schools that do not. Let those who want schools with mask mandates choose them, others select schools where parents decide if their children wear masks. Let people peacefully coexist.

Make no mistake: many parents and their kids will likely choose to remain in their current public schools. Others will look at alternatives – and the tax money would follow those kids wherever they decide to go.

It may be a way to lower everyone’s blood pressure…and ensure that kids get the education they and their parents want – not what their ZIP codes dictate.