Gay Catholic High School Teacher Fired for Being Gay to File Discrimination Complaint: VIDEO

Carla Hale, the Catholic high school teacher in Columbus, Ohio who was fired after an anonymous parent informed them that her partner's name had appeared in her mother's obituary, plans to fight for her reinstatement, she told reporters at a news conference yesterday.

The Columbus Dispatch reports:

Hale has filed a grievance and plans to appeal to the union that represents Catholic teachers in central Ohio after Watterson Principal Marian Hutson denied her initial request on Tuesday.

“I was informed that I was not terminated because I was gay, but ... the spousal relationship that was publicized in the newspaper, which happened to be an obituary, is against church teaching,” she said. Her attorney, Thomas Tootle, said he sees little distinction between the two.

Hale also will file a complaint with the Columbus Community Relations Commission under a city ordinance that makes it a crime for employers to discriminate based on sexual orientation. Mayor Michael B. Coleman is among those who have publicly supported the teacher.

Watch her press conference, AFTER THE JUMP...

Gay Catholic High School Teacher Fired After Partner's Name Appears in Mother's Obituary: VIDEO

Disgusting actions from Bishop Watterson, a Catholic High School in Clintonville, Ohio, have students and other supporters rallying around Carla Hale, a physical education teacher who was fired by the school after an anonymous parent informed them that her partner's name had appeared in her mother's obituary.

Watch Hale tell her story, AFTER THE JUMP...

The Columbus Dispatch reports:

According to a contract between the Columbus diocese and the Central Ohio Association of Catholic Educators, teachers can be terminated for “immorality” or “serious unethical conduct.” George Jones, a spokesman for the diocese, had no comment yesterday, saying personnel matters are confidential.

Hale, a physical-education teacher who taught at Watterson for 19 years, said she has filed a grievance under the terms of the contract, seeking her job back. Her attorney, Thomas Tootle, said they are exploring other legal options.

Hale, a practicing Methodist, said she also hopes the reaction to her dismissal spurs Catholic leaders to reconsider their stance on gay relationships.

Hale did not discuss her sexual orientation or her partner with students or teachers. A Change.org petitionto reinstate her now has more than 10,000 signatures.

The Dispatch adds that Hale's firing may violate city law:

The firing of a gay physical-education teacher from a Columbus Catholic high school would be a violation of a city ordinance if a complaint were filed and investigators determined the dismissal was based on her sexual orientation...A Columbus city ordinance makes it a misdemeanor for an employer to discriminate against an employee based on sexual orientation. City law also states that an employer cannot have a policy that discriminates based on sexual orientation. Those who are found guilty could face up to 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Students have left testimonies in support of Hale.

Wrote Amanda Lux:

When I was a student at Bishop Watterson, we were always taught to treat others with dignity and compassion. As an alumni, I still credit Bishop Watterson with shaping me into the person I am today -- both morally and ethically. I am deeply saddened to learn that, in spite of what Watterson taught me about respect for all humanity, a longstanding and well-respected faculty member was treated so unfairly. Ms. Hale has always been an excellent coach and teacher. Her sexual orientation and lifestyle choices have no bearing on her capacity to educate her students and should NOT be grounds for termination of employment.

Wrote Lauren Bogenrief:

Bishop Watterson demands that we all treat each other with equality and respect. I hope they see that their students are standing up for the morally right thing, not to just rebel against the school. Carla Hale is a child of God and equal in his eyes to all of us. Bishop Watterson needs to recognize that.

Watch Hale tell her story, AFTER THE JUMP...

A&M Student Body President Vetoes Bill Allowing Religion-Based Discrimination Against Campus LGBT Center

Texas A&M student body president John Claybrook has vetoed a measure we reported on yesterday that would allow students to opt out of funding the campus GLBT Resource Center if they have religious objections.

The Eagle reports:

News this week that some student senators had targeted the center thrust the traditionally conservative university into the national spotlight, and Claybrook said it was time to "stop the bleeding."

“The damage must stop today,” Claybrook wrote in a letter announcing the veto. “Texas A&M students represent our core value of respect exceptionally and I'm very proud of the family at this university. Now, more than ever, is the time to show great resolve and come together, treating each other like the family that we are.”

Claybrook's veto means that the legislation passed 35-28 on Wednesday will not represent the official opinion of the student body at Texas A&M.

The student senate may attempt to override the veto on April 17 when it meets again, though it's unclear if it plans to do so.

Read Claybrook's full press release here.

Texas A&M Student Senate Passes Measure Allowing Religion-Based Discrimination Against Campus GLBT Center

The Texas A&M Student Senate last night voted 35-28 in favor of a measure allowing students to opt out of funding the campus GLBT Resource Center if they have religious objections, the Dallas Voice reports:

Less than 24 hours before the vote, the name of the bill was changed from the “GLBT Funding Opt Out Bill” to the “The Religious Funding Exemption Bill,” and specific references to the GLBT Resource Center were removed. However, opponents of the bill who packed a Student Senate meeting before the vote Wednesday said the name change did not alter the bill’s discriminatory, anti-gay intent.

With the crowd spilling into the hallways, an overflow viewing room was set up, and the Senate meeting had to be stopped several times so administrators could clear fire exits, according to a report in The Eagle of Bryan-College Station. Emotions ran high, with senators cursing and the woman assigned to tally their votes bursting into tears.

KBTX reports on the contentious meeting and has a long piece on the history of the bill:

According to a university spokesman, the GLBT Resource Center receives about $100,000 a year in funding provided by student fees, averaging out to a contribution of around $2 per student.

GLBT Aggies President Kimberly Villa says the center provides a "safe space" for those students who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered, and that a vote in any way to strategically divert funding would hurt a population which has experienced a history of discrimination on the Texas A&M Campus. The center provides reference materials, counseling support, and programming concerning GLBT health and awareness issues.

The "Religious Funding Exemption Bill" was originally written by a student who felt morally and religiously opposed to paying fees that go towards the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Resource Center on campus.

A&M Student Body President John Claybrook (who took the inset photo that was published by kbtx) has the option to veto the measure but has not said if he will.

(image kbtx)

UPDATE: Zack Ford at Think Progress makes note of this even more heinous development:

Though it’s unclear this student-led attack on LGBT Aggies is enforceable, the state legislature is considering a broader change that very well could. Texas Rep. Bill Zedler (R) has filed an amendment to the state’s appropriations bill to cut funding for public universities that have “Gender and Sexuality Centers and Related Student Centers.” The amendment offensively claims that the centers promote behaviors that have a high risk for disease:

An institution of higher education may not use money appropriated to the institution under this Act, or any property or facility of the institution funded by appropriations under this Act, to support, promote, or encourage any behavior that would lead to high risk behavior for AIDS, HIV, Hepatitis B, or any sexually transmitted disease.

'Don't Say Gay' Bill Dies Again in Tennessee House

This bit of news passed me by during this week's marriage melee, but Tennessee's 'Don't Say Gay' bill, which would have prohibited discussion of homosexuality in the classroom, has died again, the AP reports:

The House sponsor, Republican Rep. John Ragan of Oak Ridge, had planned to amend the legislation to require principals or counselors to identify students who might be a potential threat, but he never got a chance to do so.

The amended version would have been quite different than the Senate proposal, which sought to give schools the authority to inform parents about children who talk to school officials about their sexuality.

"I'm disappointed," Ragan said. "I thought it was a good bill. It was about school safety."

Ragan plans to reintroduce the bill next year.

Right-Winger Says California Dept. of Education is 'Raping Innocence of Children' with New LGBT-Inclusive Books List

Go to the California Department of Education's updated 'Recommended Literature List' and search for "lgbt, gay, lesbian, homosexual, queer, bisexual, transgender, "sexual minority", "marriage equality" in the box titled "annotation" and dozens of LGBT-inclusive titles appear, many of them new to the list. The list is recommended reading for K-12 students.

The Mercury News reports:

While the state list has addressed controversial topics before, this is the first time it included works that were honored by the Stonewall Book Awards, which have been given out since 1971 to recognize contributions to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender literature.

"We have titles in the list for the LGBT community for multiple recommended grade levels," said Roxane Fidler, the CDE's education programs consultant. "There are books from the Stonewall Book Awards, which has not previously been on the list," Fidler said.

The online catalog, Recommended Literature: Pre-Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve, contains more than 7,800 books meant to prepare students for college, a career and the changing world, Fidler said. Because the newest titles were published in 2012, some of the included books embrace today's cultural and civil rights challenges. It was last revised in 2008.

The list includes the first-ever recommended title with a transgender theme:

The book is titled “I Am J.” It’s a young adult novel about a teen, Jennifer, who identifies and sees herself as a boy.

In one passage, her father, Manny, lovingly tells J — as she begins calling herself—  that she doesn’t have to take a traditional path in life. But it’s clear he’s talking about professions, not gender identity.
 
Manny stood up and pulled J into a hug. “You’re still my baby girl,” he said into J’s baseball cap. His voice was sweet and crooning. “You’ll always be my baby girl."

Some right-wingers are freaking out:

Sandy Rios, host of a morning radio show on American Family Radio or AFR Talk, called this list of titles "appalling. "

"It's a frightening trend," Rios said in an interview. "The reading lists are very overtly propagating a point of view that is at odds with most American parents. Leftist educators are advocates of everything from socialism to sexual anarchy. It's very base; it's raping the innocence of our children."

But Fidler said the works are not mandatory reading and they are chosen based on quality not ideology.

There are "no controversial books," Fidler said. The teachers, librarians, administrators, curriculum planners and college professors who curated the list rarely had trouble deciding whether a well-written book should not be included because of its topic, she added.