Tennessee Principal Tells Gay Students They're 'Going to Hell': VIDEO
A Tennessee school principal who "has a habit of pushing the envelope" according to ABC24, is under fire for pointing at gay students at Haywood High School and telling them they're going to hell:
Dorothy Bond (right) is the principal at Haywood High School in Brownsville, Tennessee. She's accused of making insensitive remarks during a meeting with students. Parents are hot under the collar and the comments could drive a wedge between people living there.
“At first she was talking about PDA and she turned around and she directly pointed to the gay people and said if you're gay you're going to hell and if you're pregnant, you're life is over,” Amber Whittiemore said.
Whittiemore wasn't there to hear those words but her friend, who is gay, was. She called Amber in tears.
“When I heard about it, I was outraged,” said Haywood High School parent Tony Snipes.
Snipes said it's not the first time that Bond has made anti-gay remarks: “A couple of years ago when she was principal over at Sunny Hill one of my children had his hair in braids. At an assembly she told the young men if they're sitting between the legs of a girl getting their hair braided for a few hours, that they must be gay...If you're pregnant or homosexual, you're not welcome to Haywood County High School.”
Snipes also said Bond rebuffed him when he called her to complain. Said Bond, according to Snipes: ‘I'm sorry if I offended you but my view is still the same you're not welcome here."
Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...
@Caldoso... That's a bit much, no?
Posted by: Steve | Mar 1, 2012 11:08:54 AM
This is a PUBLIC school. What right does she have to tell any student who is not a danger to herself or others that they are not welcome? Go work for a private school if you want the freedom to deny others an education.
Posted by: Kevin_BGFH | Mar 1, 2012 11:14:02 AM
Who the hell IS this woman, and why is she still employed? She should've lost her job after the FIRST incident cited!
Posted by: jim | Mar 1, 2012 11:31:21 AM
And this woman is working in public education. Fire her!!!
Posted by: Rob | Mar 1, 2012 11:43:45 AM
I've just sent a respectful email to both Principal Bond as well as the Superintendent of schools in Bronwsville.
I expressed my disgust at her words, and her bringing her own personal religious beliefs into a public school.
I also noted that not all religions agree with her personal religious beliefs regarding gays.
It seems that we see at least once a week that one of these public figures misuses their positions of authority.
I send my emails, but I wonder whether it matters one bit to these religious bigots.
Posted by: Continuum | Mar 1, 2012 12:01:14 PM
Most telling part of the story is unquoted in the above:
"The district would not say if the principal would be disciplined. According to a statement, the district says it does not condone or engage in the unlawful discrimination of administrators, faculty, or students on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, or national origin."
Nope -- they just condone and engage in discrimination against classes of people (in this case, pregnant teens and lgbtq students) who don't happen to be covered under anti-discrimination laws.
But something just hit me -- we are making the unprecedentedly fast progress we are towards full equality precisely because small towns can no longer get away with things like this without it becoming national news in no time, with a HUGE nationwide outcry arising in moments. And this is precisely why we're seeing the degree of ferocity in the backlash that we are. The "real issue" here isn't the usual hot-buttons of marriage equality or anti-discrimination laws. It's the fact that in an increasingly interconnected world, it's harder for regionally/culturally sanctioned bigotry to pass under the radar. Used to be we were all "safely" tucked away in the usual ghettos -- New York, San Francisco, etc. -- so they could easily just brush our demands for equality aside as examples of "degeneracy" of "cultural elitists" or whatever. And clearly, they still do use this line, but at this point in the battle, it only marginalizes them further and further. This is just about the power to locally oppress along whatever arbitrary lines happen to suit them at the moment, and the true backlash going on here is against their own obvious obsolescence in the face of contemporary cultural/technological/social realities.
I suppose that's probably all obvious to everybody, but it just felt like a major epiphany of perspective for me.
Posted by: Shelly | Mar 1, 2012 12:03:25 PM
Maybe Tennessee needs this "don't say gay" thing to protect the gay students from evil rotten bigot christian administrators.
Posted by: Craig | Mar 1, 2012 12:47:11 PM
Board of Education phone number
731-772-9613
Ask for Art Garrett
Posted by: Mike | Mar 1, 2012 1:00:31 PM
and she's going to the unemployment line :D
Posted by: Little Kiwi | Mar 1, 2012 1:00:37 PM
Shelly brings up a great point; however, I wonder if the pregnant teens would be considered a protected class because pregnancy is a medical condition.
As we've seen with the Americans with Disabilities Act and in some employment laws, it's difficult for government agencies to discriminate against people with medical conditions.
I believe that being gay is one of the only classes where there's no national protections against discrimination.
Posted by: Bob | Mar 1, 2012 1:14:01 PM
Stupid is as stupid does.
Posted by: Ninong | Mar 1, 2012 1:56:30 PM
Disgusting.
Posted by: Matt26 | Mar 1, 2012 2:15:54 PM
There's no way she should have a job. Bring in the feds.
Posted by: Shannon 1981 | Mar 1, 2012 2:20:45 PM
It would appear that she and the School Board and the Superintendent of Schools are not aware that she is in violation of the Tennessee Educator's Code of Ethics.
In Section 49-5-1003, Paragraph b,line 5, it states that the educator shall "Not intentionally expose the student to embarrassment or disparagement;". It would behoove parents and students alike to bring up such information to the Superintendent, the Board of Education and to the Principal herself. I am not sure about this state, but in some states violations of the Code of Ethics are grounds for removal of teaching certifications and administration certificates. Call the "hated" ACLU, get a lawyer, and sue the bastards into submission. Yes, do make a FEDERAL CASE out of it!
Posted by: vanndean | Mar 1, 2012 2:23:29 PM
@VANNDEAN- is there a way for those of us without kids in the district to be able to get the ACLU On board on these students' behalf?
Posted by: Shannon 1981 | Mar 1, 2012 3:05:47 PM
Anyway to see what the School System said after the commercial break?
Posted by: Taylor | Mar 1, 2012 3:07:44 PM
She's obviously a moron. Throw her ass out.
Posted by: Liz | Mar 1, 2012 3:12:38 PM
Hey AWCLARK0227 I'm sorry but I stopped believing in your fairy tales when I learned to think like an adult, so take your little book of tall tales and go play with the others on the short bus.
Posted by: Akula | Mar 1, 2012 3:27:51 PM
Give her a mop and bucket and let her clean the restroom floors.
Posted by: Michael | Mar 1, 2012 3:28:26 PM
Isn't it just hilarious watching the Catholic Trolls trying to use a fictional story book like a factual book of law?
Add to that, they cherry pick their laws (which god does not approve of BTW)
If you are gonna hate on homosexuality, I'm gonna hate on your ass for wearing mixed clothes, eating pork, shrimp, and of course touching an "unclean" woman (During her period and about a week after)
That's right you loser asshats, you can't touch your girlfriend/fiancee/wife for HALF OF THE MONTH!!! Ditto your daughter/sister/aunt/mother...
Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones!
Posted by: Crysta Williams | Mar 1, 2012 4:44:21 PM
So refreshing to read the comments with so little from the trolls.
My first time to this site, you're doing great, carry on.
I especially liked and agreed with Shelly's optimistic post, we are moving forward, we will leave ignorance and hate behind.
Love to all.
Posted by: Mott | Mar 1, 2012 5:03:30 PM
Maybe someone needs to remind the principal that it wasn't long ago that "her people" weren't welcome anywhere either, and either she can go sit on the back of the bus and go drink from the "coloreds water fountains" or she can learn this is 2012 and time for her to build a bridge and get over her bigoted river !
Posted by: tony | Mar 1, 2012 5:20:54 PM
The school's info:
Haywood High School
1175 East College Street
Brownsville, TN 38012
731-772-1845
Principal: Dorothy J. Bond bondd1@k12tn.net
Posted by: Lee | Mar 1, 2012 5:29:01 PM
@Anomanus
You must have been dropped as a child. An employee in a PUBLIC school, especially the principal, is unable to make such insensitive comments. Are you saying that you wouldn't want to the teacher who came up to you and school and said "Hey, all of you with (insert belief/physical appearance here) are damned to hell"? You are a bigot. And an ass. In this setting she does not have the freedom to say things like this.
Posted by: knightslider | Mar 1, 2012 5:49:14 PM
*want the teacher who said...() to be fired?*
Posted by: knightslider | Mar 1, 2012 5:50:26 PM