Over the past week, Virginia’s Supreme Court reinstated core parts of the lawsuit filed by Peter Vlaming. Vlaming, a former French teacher, sued West Point High School’s school board and administrators for firing him in 2018.
A judge dismissed the lawsuit before they could hear any evidence in the case. However, the Virginia Supreme Court overturned that ruling and said the lawsuit should proceed to trial.
Vlaming’s lawsuit claims that he tried to accommodate a transgender student in his class by using his masculine name. He said that he avoided the use of pronouns. However, the student, his parents, and the school told him to use the student’s male pronouns.
However, Vlaming claims he could not use the student’s preferred pronouns due to his “sincerely held religious and philosophical” beliefs. Vlaming claims that he believes that each person has a biologically fixed sex, and no one can change it.
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Consequently, the court said the lawsuit involved the First Amendment guarantee of the free exercise of religion. Hence, the Supreme Court overruled the lower court that threw it out and said the case should proceed.
Vlaming’s lawsuit alleged that the school violated his constitutional right to speak freely and exercise his religion. However, the school board argued that he violated the anti-discrimination policy.
Hence, all seven justices of the state Supreme Court agreed that two of Vlaming’s claims should move forward to trial. They upheld his claim that the school violated his right to exercise his religion under the Virginia constitution freely. Also, they reinstated his breach of contract claim against the school board.
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On the other hand, the district justified its actions by saying Vlaming was insubordinate. West Point Schools Superintendent Laura Abel said they terminated Vlaming “due to his insubordination.”
She added that he repeatedly refused to comply with directives made to him by multiple WPPS administrators. According to Abel, Vlaming’s discrimination created a hostile learning environment. In addition, Abel said the students and parents felt disrespected.
However, in a gratifying win for religious freedom and free speech, the Virginia Supreme Court ruled in Vlaming’s favor. “When religious liberty merges with free-speech protections, as it does in this case, mere ‘objectionable’ and ‘hurtful’ religious speech or, as in this case, nonspeech, is not enough to meet this standard,” the ruling said.
In addition, the ruling said Virginia’s constitution protects diversity of thought, speech, religion, and opinion. The ruling added that the state can’t coerce its citizens into pledging allegiance to views that violate their religious beliefs.
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Although the ruling did not decide the case’s merits, it concluded that Vlaming “sufficiently alleged” that the school violated his rights. The Alliance Defending Freedom, representing Vlaming, also said the school violated his rights.
“They didn’t fire Peter for something he said; they fired him for something he couldn’t say,” they said. “The Virginia Supreme Court agreed that Peter’s case against the school board should proceed,” ADF Senior Counsel Christopher Schandevel said.
Schandevel also said Vlaming’s students liked him, and he “did his best to accommodate their needs and requests.” The Supreme Court’s decision on Vlaming’s case has become a debatable issue. While some think it is a win for the First Amendment, others believe it is a move in the wrong direction.
What are your thoughts on the Supreme Court’s decision?
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