Missouri Teacher Who Displayed Pride Flag Resigns After Parent Complains (insider.com)
Wow, it's almost like the whole country is going backwards.
The teacher filed a civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Education.
- Missouri teacher John Wallis resigned after he was threatened with termination for displaying a pride flag in his classroom.
- A parent complained about Wallis, saying he "would potentially teach their child to be gay," NBC News reported.
- After resigning, Wallis filed a civil rights complaint for employment discrimination.
Several students thanked Wallis, NBC reported.
"They said: 'Thank you for having the flag up. I wouldn't know where else to go,'" Wallis said, according to NBC.
When Wallis was called in to meet with school administrators, he was told that a parent called the school, concerned that Wallis "would potentially teach their child to be gay," NBC News reported. The administrators, one of whom compared the pride flag to a confederate flag, according to NBC, told Wallis to remove the flag and signs. He did.
"This of course prompted students to ask why, and I answered truthfully while expressing that, if students had a problem with who I was, there were other open classes," Wallis tweeted. "This led to three or more calls from parents accusing me of pushing my agenda in the classroom."
Wallis added on Twitter that he was asked to sign a letter agreeing to not "discuss human sexuality or my own personal sexuality in the classroom."
The letter further said that if Wallis was "unable to present the curriculum in a manner that keeps your personal agenda on sexuality out of your narrative and the classroom discussions, we will ultimately terminate your employment," according to NBC, who viewed the letter.
Wallis signed the letter but then resigned the following day, NBC reported. On Twitter, Wallis said the letter "was the reason for my resignation."
"Indeed, it appears that there is a different set of rules if you are an LGBTQ+ educator," Wallis tweeted. "There is never a problem when a heterosexual teacher displays pictures of themselves and their spouses in a classroom, but I have a flag and all hell breaks loose."
Wow, it's almost like the whole country is going backwards.
The teacher filed a civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Education.