[9] Opponents contended that recalls were anti-democratic efforts backed by Republicans, billionaires, and charter school supporters.

Since 2019 the board came under national attention and criticism for a string of controversies, which generated various lawsuits, including one by the city itself.

On March 31, 2021, Alison Collins filed a lawsuit against the school district and her fellow commissioners who had voted for the motion of no confidence.

[23] On February 21, 2021, Autumn Looijen and Siva Raj formed a campaign committee to recall Commissioners Alison Collins, Gabriela Lopez, and Faauuga Moliga from the Board of Education.

[25] On October 18, 2021, city officials announced that each of the three recall petitions met the minimum qualifications of 51,325 valid voter signatures.

[5] Commissioners were accused of misplaced priorities focusing on school renaming and Lowell admissions as students were struggling with distance learning.

[28] Supporters argued it was urgent to recall the three Commissioners from office in order to make important decisions around the district's budget deficit and the selection of a new superintendent.

[29] Collins's tweets about Asian Americans, and the subsequent lawsuit against the school district and her fellow commissioners, were cited as additional reasons to remove her from office.

"[28] Former supervisor and public defender Matt Gonzalez[34] supported the recall due to the commissioners' lack of competence, and various decisions starting with the vote to destroy the Life of Washington[35] mural.

[40][41] Collins called the recall campaign "a move toward mayoral control and less local control… for parents who are immigrants who can vote".

[46] Lopez stated that opposition to the board's actions were due to racism, "to bring down someone who is me" (a young Latina woman), and "people want us to say we regret doing what we did ... that will never be something I will do.