Being Gay Is No Reason for Mirth in Indiana
A student opines about tolerance and the teacher gets suspended:
An Indiana high school journalism teacher has been suspended for two months after allowing an op-ed piece to run that advocates tolerance of gays.
"I can only imagine how hard it would be to come out as homosexual in today's society," [the student] wrote. "I think it is so wrong to look down on those people, or to make fun of them, just because they have a different sexuality than you."
After the editorial ran, principal Edwin Yoder mandated that all writings be subject to his approval. Sorrell and the staff, on advice from the Student Press Law Center, rejected Yoder's decision.
Previously, Yoder has asked Sorrell to bring him any stories that she felt would be controversial. After he reviewed a story on teen pregnancy that went on to run in the same issue, she said, she did not think that Chase's editorial would need the same treatment.
In February, Yoder gave Sorrell a written warning for insubordination and failing to carry out her responsibilities as a teacher by exposing students to inappropriate material.
Students? What, where? I don't see any students...
Ten students asked the East Allen County Schools' board to put the issue of the agenda of the next meeting of the New Haven, Ind., district. Their request was denied...
Hmm... a school board rejecting students... it's hard to come out of that looking like the good guys. But they gave it a shot, claiming-- and I am not making this up-- that the OP-ED WAS BIASED.
(hat tip)
3 comments:
Thanks for this... important news.
The law gives the principal the right to do what he did. But he's an idiot. Sometimes having the authority to do something doesn't mean it's right.
The Student Press law center gave bad advice on this one. Bad for the teacher anyway.
Let me add one thing though:
Probably worth getting suspended over. The prinical is an ass on this one.
I guess the school board was technically right in that the editorial was biased (which is the very nature of op-ed pieces). I'd love to see their guidelines in writing an editorial that isn't biased on some point.
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