This picture is of me — someone who has done this work for decades and is not flinching.
I write The Relentless School Nurse. I write as a school nurse, not as a metaphor, but as a lived, professional identity. For nearly a decade, this space has been where I bear witness to how policy decisions land not in theory, but in children’s bodies, brains, classrooms, and futures.
Across four decades in nursing and ten years of writing, one truth has remained constant: when systems fail children, silence is not ethical. Speaking out is part of the work. And nursing is political.
My last blog post was about the detention of a 5-year-old preschooler by ICE. What followed should have been a serious, difficult, and necessary conversation about child welfare, trauma, and public health. Instead, much of the response devolved into personal attacks, attempts to discredit me, to question my integrity, my professionalism, and my right to speak at all.
Let me be unequivocally clear: I will not be silenced by personal attacks.
And I will also not tolerate them.
Harassment, intimidation, and dehumanizing language are not “differences of opinion.” They are tactics meant to shut down moral witness and distract from the real issue at hand: a child was detained, and harm was done. I welcome disagreement rooted in facts and humanity. I do not accept cruelty masquerading as debate.
As this conversation has unfolded, we are also confronting more devastating news from Minnesota: reports that a nurse, a U.S. citizen, a healthcare professional, practicing his right to protest, was killed during a federal immigration enforcement action. As investigations continue and details emerge, one truth is already apparent: when fear, force, and dehumanization are normalized as tools of policy, people get hurt. Sometimes they die.
This is not theoretical.
This is not partisan.
And this is not an abstract policy discussion.
This is about children being detained and traumatized.
This is about families living under constant threat.
This is about communities — including nurses — absorbing the consequences of enforcement practices rooted in fear rather than care.
As a school nurse, I see daily what trauma does to children’s bodies, brains, and futures. I understand toxic stress not as a buzzword, but as a clinical and public health reality, one that interferes with learning, development, and long-term health. Fear does not stay contained within institutions. It follows children into classrooms, onto playgrounds, and into adulthood.
Detaining a preschooler is not a neutral act.
It is a child welfare issue.
It is a public health issue.
It is a moral issue.
I welcome thoughtful, respectful disagreement. Democracy depends on dialogue.
What I will not accept, here or anywhere, is harassment, threats, or the normalization of cruelty, particularly toward children or toward those who advocate for them.
So let me be explicit about boundaries:
This space is for fact-based, humane discussion.
Personal attacks, threats, and dehumanizing language will be removed.
Disagree respectfully — or disengage.
And let me say this plainly:
Children are not criminals.
Nurses do not abandon their ethics for comfort or approval.
Silence in the face of harm is not neutrality — it is complicity.
If centering children, families, and human dignity makes you uncomfortable, I invite you to reflect on why. Discomfort can be instructive. Cruelty is not.
I will continue to write.
I will continue to speak.
I will continue to stand with children, families, and my nursing colleagues.
Relentlessly.
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I continue to applaud you and your writing, your heart and your passion. I love you Robin and am grateful for our friendship! You continue to inspire me Every. Single. Day. You and we, as nurses, shall not be silenced.
onward…
Well stated Robin! I stand 100% with you. Thank you for using your voice.
Dear Robin, standing with you in full support.
That I know is absolute truth.
I proudly stand with you.
I feel that every time I write a new blog and you share your messages. I appreciate your friendship Judy.
Thank you for writing and speaking the truth, so clearly and passionately.
Thank you for sharing your comments, they are appreciated.
I support your resistance. I have been following you from the beginning.
I am a school nurse retired.
Thank you for your support and for the care you gave in years of school nursing!
Robin, you are one of the most courageous people I know. You speak the truth and have done the work. On this of all nights when we have lost one of our own in Minneapolis, we need to hold you as a role model.
You bring to life the words of Tim Snyder:
“Stand out.
Someone has to. It is easy to follow along. It can feel strange to do or say something different. But without that unease, there is no freedom. Remember Rosa Parks. The moment you set an example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will follow.”
Timothy Snyder, On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century
My goodness Donna, thank you for your beautiful words. I was re-reading Tim Snyder this morning as I work on my blog post about the killing of the ICU nurse. Your gift that I refer to often!
Hi Robin,
Happy New Year, and I hope all is well! Thank you for using your voice and for writing such prolific blogs. You say what needs to be said, often when it matters most. It is truly an honor to know you and to support you. One of my favorite quotes from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is, Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. My message to you is simpleand this quote captures it perfectly. [May You Be Proud of the Work You Do the Person You Are and the – Etsy …]
Thanks for all you do to support nurses, children, and families!
Kind regards,
Lynne P. Meadows, MSN, RN, FNASN Director District Health Services Fulton County Schools 6201 Powers Ferry Road Atlanta, GA 30339 470-254-2177 ph 1-866-422-8167 fax meadowsl@fultonschools.orgmeadowsl@fultonschools.org http://www.fultonschools.orghttp://www.fultonschools.org/ Customer Satisfaction Surveyhttps://fultonschools.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eXlr2ovElYrdnjE Fulton C.A.R.E.S. Employee Wellness Program, Chair Georgia Association of School Nurses State Data Champion [cid:image002.png@01DC8D90.EA0140F0][cid:image003.png@01DC8D90.EA0140F0][cid:image004.png@01DC8D90.EA0140F0] Follow Student Health Services on Twitter at SHS_FCS@fcsnurses Ask me about FultonCARES or click herehttps://www.fultonschools.org/Domain/3047 to learn more.
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Great reminder Lynne, hope to see you soon so I can hug you in person for this comment.
Liam is a child. A child.
Renee Good was a mom.
Alex was a nurse. A nurse.
Silence is complicity. Keep speaking up. Speaking LOUDLY. We should ALL be SHOUTING!
Thank you for your message Janis!
I stand tall and proud beside you, Robin. Your voice speaks volumes for everyone you represent.
Love you my special friend!
I’m really sad that you have to write this! I really don’t have anything more to add to what others have already written in your support. The one thing I can say is I STAND WITH YOU and ALL PROTECTORS OF CHILDREN! Keep on writing!
Michele RN/Retired School Nurse
Hi Michele, It made me sad too, but the positive messages of support erase the negativity and ugliness that was spewed, and continues to be. It will not sway me, and I will continue to speak out. I appreciate your message.
You are brave, brilliant, and strong. I am so proud to call you a colleague. Keep speaking and changing the world. I will not stay silent, either.
With “relentless” solidarity,
Brandi Glasscock
Dear Robin,
Thank you for your courage and committment. You are one of the activists I speak about when I teach Health Policy to nursing students. Your blogs go in my teaching file. You are carrying on in the best tradition of Nursing.
I am so sad and sorry that people have been spewing ugliness at you. That is all they have-ugliness and rage and it will destroy whatever is left of their souls. Sending you hugs on this heartsickening day.
Patricia Walling Kelly, RN, DNP
Former Program Director University Hospital Trauma Center, Newark, NJ
Thank you so much Patricia. Your message means so much to me and I am grateful that you let me know!
Your message is spot on as always! Thanks for using your voice to inspire us on these critical issues of our time! I stand by you unequivocally! Keep on speaking the truth on behalf of the most vulnerable in our world!
I appreciate your support Deb!
You go girl!!