In a recent thread, one of my co-respondents tipped me off to a case of a professor at Los Angeles City College who attacked a Christian student in class (verbally). I checked in to it and found that the incident occurred in 2008, when Professor John Matteson, a speech teacher, shut off a presentation by student Jonathan Lopez, who was speaking of his Christian beliefs, calling him a "fascist bastard". A complaint was filed with the school and in federal court, which I understand Lopez lost.
http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/Home/ADFContent?cid=4823
(The Alliance Defense Fund represented Lopez.)
There have been a number of similar incidents involving Christian students being ridiculed by their teachers in universities and high schools in recent years. While the above case is 2 years old, similar incidents happen regularly today.
I am currently working on a current story, which is quite similar. It involves a teacher in a California university querying his students a few weeks ago as to how many were Christian-then describing to them how Christianity had led them astray and had oppressed Muslims for centuries.
Stay tuned.
I read the federal court decision. In my view, the court actually upheld Lopez's rights very well. They found that he had no standing to sue LACC, because the sexual harassment policy of LACC had not been invoked against him, and he had not even been threatened with discipline. The teacher, Lopez was told, would be disciplined, and Lopez still has a suit pending against the teacher.
ReplyDeleteThe court was quite explicit that the facts of the case were disturbing, and that a college cannot be expected to develop policies which will protect any given person or group from being "offended" (as the teacher apparently was), without eviscerating free speech. Almost any speech will offend someone.
What is puzzling is, why did Lopez choose to file suit challenging an admittedly vague sexual harassment policy, when it had not been invoked in any way against his speech?
All I would have wanted is to see the teacher discipline by the school and his behavior publicized. I can't imagine myself suing somebody for sexual harassment.
ReplyDeleteSiarlys, please stop confusing the issue with facts. Christians need to feel persecuted. Nobody has been feeding them to the lions for nearly 2000 years, and they're starting to feel ignored.
ReplyDeleteYou're half right Lance. There ARE Christians who feel a need for a martyr complex, and would like to show the scars of being half-eaten by lions, without losing the enjoyment of their comfortable lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteBut, it is also true, and evidenced in this case, that there are culture vultures in academia and other sectors who think Christianity, or religion in general, is so marginal, and so politically incorrect, that they can dump on religious expression as if it was a reading from Mein Kampf.
It is a kind of millenarianism, which is evident both in what vaguely passes for a cultural "left" in this country, and in the expectations of the Republicans who pass themselves off as "conservatives." Both possess a dangerous element of "all the people think like me, or at least, all the right thinking people do, so how did those OTHERS manage to win an election, or matriculate at this school, or whatever?"
The "nuance" in this case, is that Lopez had a legitimate complaint against the professor, he had no standing to sue the college over its sexual harassment policy, and the appeals court balanced the importance of NOT condoning the professor's actions, while also dismissing the law suit. Most headlines are sounding off on how Lopez "lost" the suit. Reading what the court said give a more nuanced and reassuring picture.
"You're half right Lance. There ARE Christians who feel a need for a martyr complex, and would like to show the scars of being half-eaten by lions, without losing the enjoyment of their comfortable lifestyle."
ReplyDeleteThat's about as far as Christians take their anger. They don't go out and riot when they are offended.
Had I been Lopez, I would have cut the professor down to size and made him a laughing stock on my blog. I would not have sued him.
Of course, seriously I see that a young college student is usually not equipped to debate with the teacher and that is why it is wrong for that teacher to do what he did. It is a form of bullying. I don't like bullies.
Indeed. Most of the Christians I know don't have much of a need for the martyr complex.
ReplyDeleteSee? We all find much more to agree on than our political leaders give us credit for.
ReplyDelete