Vivian Geraghty taught English at Jackson Memorial Middle School in Massillon, Ohio. She was forced to resign for refusing to use the “preferred name and pronouns” of two transgender-identified students who were “socially transitioning,” due to her belief in the fact that there are only two sexes – male and female.
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed a complaint on her behalf, and the Jackson Local School District has agreed to pay $450,000 in damages and attorney’s fees for violating Geraghty’s free speech.
It’s the third victory in a row for ADF, which describes itself as “an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.”
As the Daily Citizen has reported, it’s yet another victory for ADF as it seeks to protect the First Amendment rights of teachers. The legal aid group also represented four Virginia teachers, in two separate cases, who won victories over school districts with transgender policies that forced teachers to participate in students’ “gender transitions.”
ADF Legal Counsel Logan Spena said of Geraghty’s victory:
No school official can force a teacher to set her religious beliefs aside in order to keep her job. The school tried to force Vivian to accept and repeat the school’s viewpoint on issues that go to the foundation of morality and human identity, like what makes us male or female, by ordering her to personally participate in the social transition of her students.
The First Amendment prohibits that abuse of power, and Jackson Local School District officials have learned that comes at a steep cost. Vivian resisted this unconstitutional demand and explained that her Christian faith made her unable to participate in her students’ social transition, and she has received just vindication for taking this stand.
According to Geraghty’s initial complaint, “Two of her students were asking to be addressed by different names and/or pronouns to signify that they had ‘transitioned’ to a gender that was inconsistent with their sex,” and she was “instructed by a school official to personally participate in that ‘social transition.’”
Because of her “scientific understanding and her Christian faith,” she knows there are only two sexes. She also knows there’s been a huge increase in the number of adolescents and teens identifying as something other than their sex.
Geraghty also knows the harms from affirming children’s sexual identity confusion, as the complaint explained:
Ms. Geraghty understands that many children who at some point express a gender identity inconsistent with their sex will eventually return to expressing an identity in harmony with their sex. For these children, all forms of treatment – whether psychosocial or medical – that “validate” the gender identity inconsistent with the child’s sex are harmful, but irreversible forms of treatment are the most harmful.
She went to the school principal, Kacy Carter, hoping to reach “a solution that would allow her to continue teaching without violating her religious beliefs and constitutional rights.”
When school officials found out that religion, as well as science, undergirded her belief in two sexes, she was told to set aside her faith. She refused to do this and was forced to resign – just two hours after she had gone to speak with them.
Now, Jackson Local School District is paying the price for violating her religious liberty and freedom of speech.
Science is clear that humans come in two types, male and female, based on their reproductive capacity. Transgenderism is a pseudoscientific ideology, completely disconnected from reality.
And Scripture is clear that God made humans male and female, and both men and women reflect His image. To deny this is an affront to God as the creator and sustainer of life.
Yet schools across the nation deny this reality, threatening parents’ rights, undermining the free speech and religious freedom of educators, and refusing to guard the privacy and safety of students.
Parents Defending Education reported that as of October 30, more than 1,143 school districts have transgender policies, covering almost 21,000 schools with 12.3 million students. Such policies may require educators to lie to parents and hide a child’s sexual identity confusion, force school staff to use “preferred names and pronouns,” and allow students to use restrooms and play sports based on their transgender identification.
Until school boards and administrators come to their senses, ADF – and other legal aid groups – will have plenty of opportunities to go after school districts with these radical transgender policies.
Related articles and resources:
Here are some groups providing legal aid, information and assistance to protect free speech, religious freedom and parental rights in education:
Becket — Religious Liberty for All
Child & Parental Rights Campaign
Christian Professor Wins $400,000 Settlement in Compelled Personal Pronouns Case
‘Equipping Parents For Back-To-School’ – Updated Resource Empowers Parents
Even Hard-Boiled Evolutionists are Standing Strong Against Gender Madness
Free Speech Victory for Virginia Teacher Fired Over ‘Transgender’ Pronoun Policy
There is No Pride in Denying Reality or the Image of God in Humanity
Teacher Wrongly Fired for Refusing to Use ‘Preferred Pronouns’ Wins $575,000
Virginia School District Will Respect Teachers’ Religious Freedom and Speech What’s Your School District’s ‘Transgender’ Policy?
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