WTH ? Why should some sort of apology be required if you say that the
Bible
condemns homosexuality ? That is a statement of fact. Similarly, there
are
statements condemning homosexuality in Buddhist scriptures, in
Zoroastrian
scriptures, Baha'i scriptures, and so forth, including the Koran. This is
not
in the least dispute.
.
Billy
.
.
DOE Investigating School Over Bible and Homosexuality Comments
By _Jeff Schapiro_ (http://www.christianpost.com/author/jeff-schapiro/) ,
Christian Post Reporter
December 1, 2012|7:59 am
A federal investigation has begun in an Alabama school district after a
Junior ROTC instructor allegedly expressed his belief that the Bible does not
support the homosexual lifestyle during class.
The U.S. Department of _Education_
(http://www.christianpost.com/topics/education/) recently sent a letter to
Huntsville City Schools Superintendent
Casey Wardynski, informing him that the department will be looking into the
incident that occurred in April at Grissom High School.
A female student in the class was offended after the instructor, 1st Sgt.
Lynn Vanzandt, expressed his beliefs about same-sex relationships. The
15-year-old student and her mother, Mia Gonzales, then contacted a local gay
advocacy group, GLBT Advocacy and _Youth_
(http://www.christianpost.com/topics/youth/) Services, which complained to
the school on the student's behalf.
"My first thought was, 'What if there was a gay student in that class that
looked up to that instructor?'" Gonzales told AL.com in August. "I'm not
arguing with what people believe. But what if this one student would have
committed suicide? That was a concern for me."
On Nov. 21 the DOE sent a letter to James Robinson, director of GLBT
Advocacy and Youth Services, which says the department will be investigating
whether or not students were "subjected to a hostile _environment_
(http://www.christianpost.com/topics/environment/) on the basis of sex or
harassment
based on failing to conform to _gender_
(http://www.christianpost.com/topics/gender/) stereotypes." They will also
seek to find out if the school
district "retaliated against the Student...by failing to respond and take
action
reasonably calculated to stop the peer bullying."
A statement from Huntsville City Schools, which was emailed to The
Christian Post by district spokesperson Keith Ward on Friday, points out that
the
letter from the DOE's Office For Civil Rights (OCR) indicates the department
has not yet come to any conclusions regarding the incident.
Read more at
_http://www.christianpost.com/news/doe-investigating-school-over-bible-and-homosexuality-comments-85891/#4g6PjYPk6DGXUZ5e.99_
(http://www.christianpost.com/news/doe-investigating-school-over-bible-and-homosexuality-
comments-85891/#4g6PjYPk6DGXUZ5e.99)
"The letter notes that the investigation 'in no way implies that OCR has
made a determination with reqard to their merits,' and that the 'OCR is a
neutral fact-finder' in analyzing the complaint," the statement reads. "The
district will work with the OCR to provide any assistance to assure a prompt
resolution."
In May an attorney from the Freedom From Religion Foundation, a
Wisconsin-based atheist organization, also emailed the district's
superintendent to
complain about the situation. The email says Vanzandt "bullied" students and
"preached" his beliefs to them, and claims at least one student left the
class in tears.
It also acknowledges that Vanzandt apologized to students, but says an
apology isn't enough.
In a letter of response, the attorney for the Huntsville City Board of
Education, J.R. Brooks, called the accusation of bullying "more than a little
over the top."
"I am sorry...you do not believe that an apology is in the slightest way
helpful," wrote Brooks in August. "The Superintendent disagrees with your
point of view. Absent further conduct of a similar nature, this matter is
closed."
According to sources that spoke with WHNT-TV in Huntsville, there are
conflicting accounts from other students of what happened during the classroom
conversation in April – specifically concerning the context of the
conversation and who said what.
Read more at
_http://www.christianpost.com/news/doe-investigating-school-over-bible-and-homosexuality-comments-85891/#4g6PjYPk6DGXUZ5e.99_
(http://www.christianpost.com/news/doe-investigating-school-over-bible-and-homosexuality-
comments-85891/#4g6PjYPk6DGXUZ5e.99)
--
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