Colorado has been the center of many of the disagreements when it comes to the LGBQT community. Of course, it's the place where Christian bakers and photographers got into legal trouble for refusing to serve members of that community based upon their religious beliefs. Generally,y everything the Colorado State government or county, and local governments do is to carve out special privileges for members of the community. Which also means, members of the Christian community are told their rights are secondary. And don't get me started on respecting parents' rights.
The Denver school board recently terminated a professor at the Northeast Early College. Advanced high school students planning on going to college attended Northeast to earn college credits. Jennifer Honka was a professor teaching a class entitled, French language and culture. Jennifer made no bones about her sexual orientation. This involved membership in several organizations, advocacy for LGBTQ rights, and made its way into the classroom. It was not her promotion of her sexuality that got her in trouble however.
Jennifer created a class activity, a play, to demonstrate some of the highlights of French culture. As part of that play, which she created, female students would be involved in scenes that required them to kiss another female student. The play did not involve male students kissing each other or male/ female kissing scenes. Students were told they could opt out of the actual kissing by blowing a kiss or fist bumping their partner. But in a class where she said, "the answer is always yes," she pressured the female students to participate in the physical kissing. In fact one female student who refused was given a failing grade for the activity.
That student and her family complained to the school board, which conducted an investigation and determined what most observers believe, that the activity was discriminatory. It appears, but the board isn't commenting, that because only the females were required to participate that was the discrimination. If the males had to participate in a similar activity, most observers believe Jennifer would still be employed.
While the decision made by the school board appears to be the correct decision, it might have been made for the wrong reasons. No student should be forced to participate in any sexualized activity. That should have been the sole basis for the board's decision. Whether or not the boys had to participate in a similar scene is irrelevant. But at least we can hope that Ms. Honka learns from her experience. Somehow, I don't think she will.
