Male Teacher Won't Be Forced to Supervise Biological Girl Getting Dressed in Boys' Locker Room
A school district in Terre Haute, Indiana is allowing a gender-confused biological female to participate in a boys' physical education class, and allowing her to change her clothes with the boys. In addition, the boys have not been told they've been changing clothes with a female for more than a month and their parents have not been informed either.
In early August 2023, a male middle school P.E. teacher requested several times to receive a conscience-based religious accommodation from the school district in order to be reassigned after he was required to supervise the biological female in the locker room.
After the teacher did not receive any response to his repeated requests, Liberty Counsel, a Christian religious rights law firm, sent a letter to Vigo County's Superintendent of Schools Dr. Christopher Himsel on behalf of the middle school teacher.
The letter requested the district grant the teacher's religious accommodation based on his sincerely held Christian beliefs as required by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The legal firm's letter outlined how the directive to supervise a biological female in the boys' locker room would violate the teacher's religious, scientific, and moral beliefs about the nature of sexuality as well as the rights of the boys and their parents.
The letter stated his religious beliefs would be violated if he was forced to do any of the following:
- "Observe a female (who is not his wife) in a state of nudity or undress."
- "Cause minor boys to unknowingly undress in front of and be observed by a minor female."
- "Lie to students and parents (whether by omission or commission)."
"The school district cannot force a male P.E. teacher to supervise a biological girl in the boys' locker room where she undresses for gym class. Neither may a school force a teacher to lie to the boys and hide this situation from parents. And certainly, a public school cannot ignore religious accommodations which are protected by law. The school must reverse course and protect the rights and privacy of students, teachers, and parents," said Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver in a press release.
School District Has Not Informed Boys or Their Parents
The nonprofit law firm said the school district has responded to the teacher's first concern. Public school administrators at Vigo County School Corporation are no longer requiring him to participate in the locker room surveillance.
However, as of Sept. 19, the district reportedly has not yet addressed the teacher's other two religious concerns.
The district has not informed the boys that a biological girl has been undressing with them in the locker room. School officials also have not informed parents about the situation, the law firm said.
This prompted Liberty Council to send a follow-up letter to the school district on Sept. 8 asking how it would accommodate the teacher to protect the boys' privacy and avoid omitting the truth from them and their parents.
The male teacher was also informed by the school district that the girl he was to supervise was being "chemically transitioned," the law firm said in the letter.
Liberty also advised the district that Indiana law forbids female genital mutilation. If the district has knowledge of any intent to chemically sterilize or surgically mutilate the child in violation of Indiana law, then Liberty Counsel contends it is obligated to report this as child abuse to law enforcement.
CBN News has reached out to Superintendent Himsel for comment. We'll post it here if we hear back.
**Please sign up for CBN Newsletters and download the CBN News app to ensure you keep receiving the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***
