Canadian Teacher Suspended for Anti-Gay Letters To Editor

VANCOUVER -- As an evangelical Christian lay preacher, Chris Kempling believes that homosexual acts are immoral.

While many might disagree with this view, most would also defend Mr. Kempling's right to his opinion. Except that he is also a public high-school teacher and counsellor, and he expressed his strong beliefs about homosexuality in letters to his local paper.

Yesterday, the B.C. College of Teachers suspended him from teaching for one month after finding him guilty of conduct unbecoming a member of the college.

Although there was no evidence that Mr. Kempling expressed his views in the classroom, the college ruled that writing the antihomosexual letters was incompatible with "his role as a teacher in a school system that must function in an environment of tolerance and understanding."

In one letter to the weekly Cariboo Observer in Quesnel, where Mr. Kempling teaches, he wrote: "Many mental health professionals, including myself, believe homosexuality to be the result of abnormal psychosocial influences." He added: "The majority of religions consider [gay] behaviour to be immoral."

In another letter, Mr. Kempling, a teacher at Correlieu Secondary School for the past 13 years, said that "gay people are seriously at risk, not because of heterosexual attitudes, but because of their sexual behaviour."

The college of teachers, which at one point threatened to suspend him for five months, stressed that he was being punished for his actions, not his beliefs.

"His actions disclose a failure to uphold values that are fundamental to the education system and Canadian society, values that include sexual equality and respect for persons of differing sexual orientation," the college said.

In an interview, Mr. Kempling was unrepentant and vowed to fight his suspension in court.

"On reflection, I wish I'd been a little less strident but as a writer, how do you get people's attention? I was under the impression -- apparently false -- that you have the right to express your opinion on the editorial page," he said.

"I don't think my views on sexual orientation should be restricted to speaking inside the four walls of my little church."

The Albuquerque Tribune

Punished teachers sue school district

By Ailene Torres
Tribune Reporter

Employees of Albuquerque Public Schools stung by reprimands over their refusal to back down on a freedom of speech issue have struck back at the school district.

Jane Gagne, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union, filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of four educators who were suspended in March.

"They are asking for reinstatement of pay, letters of reprimand be removed from personnel files and enforcement of their right to free speech," Gagne said.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque on Friday, claims the school district and a number of its employees violated the four educators' civil rights under the free speech and equal protection provisions of the First and Fourteenth amendments of the U.S. Constitution and under similar provisions of the state constitution.

The educators were suspended for refusing to remove antiwar signs from their classrooms. The school district says the educators violated the terms of their employment contracts, citing the district's controversial issues policy. That policy was recently upheld by a Board of Education committee.

"APS has clamped down on antiwar expression that did not in the least interfere with the educational process," Gagne said, "and where nothing indicates that the teachers and the counselor forced their views on anyone. In fact, they encouraged open and free discussion among pro-war and antiwar students."

Gagne added: "Yet APS promotes pro-war expressions."

Local schools are full of military recruitment posters and photographs of armed U.S. troops in uniform in Iraq, she said.

Defendant Tom Garrity, one of four co-superintendents, said the district's policy governing controversial issues was developed with help from the ACLU, among others.

The policy "comes into play when teachers give their own opinion unsolicited and out of context," Garrity said late Friday.

The complaints are moving through the district's grievance process, he said.

"We respect their right to file this (lawsuit)," he added. "It's unfortunate they chose not to wait on our process, but we look forward to addressing these issues in their proper context and in the court setting or the setting that they choose."

The educators have since returned to their schools and are back on the job.

They are supported by The Alliance for Academic Freedom, a group that supports the free expression of both teachers and students.

"These issues are at the forefront of the students' minds," said Allen Cooper, a reinstated Highland teacher.

At a board meeting Wednesday, educators, students and community members read statements of support for the educators' actions.

"To be authentic educators we must be able to express our personal convictions," said Beatrice Boles, an APS social worker. "All views should be respected." ?,b>

The alliance plans to publish a petition in a local newspaper and present it to the board, proving they have the community's support.

"I feel proud the teachers expressed their dissent to their bosses," said Sue Chavez, an APS speech pathologist. "They modeled the kind of behavior they expect from their students."

The Vancouver Sun

Critic of homosexuality can teach, not counsel

Quesnel teacher has to keep his views out of his office

Saturday, April 19, 2003

If all goes as planned, Quesnel teacher Chris Kempling will be suspended from school for one month beginning May 1.

The B.C. College of Teachers found Mr. Kempling guilty of "conduct unbecoming a member of the BCCT" for letters he wrote to a newspaper criticizing homosexuality.

Mr. Kempling, who cites his Christian faith as the basis for his views on homosexuality, has indicated that he will appeal the decision to the B.C. Supreme Court on the grounds that his Charter rights to free expression and religion are being violated.

The teacher-counsellor wrote two research essays, and sent several letters to the Quesnel Cariboo Observer and to local officials. In them, he took issue with homosexuality, though it appears his biggest complaint was with what he sees as the "pro-homosexuality" bias of the B.C. school curriculum.

Mr. Kempling charged that homosexual relationships are unstable and noted that many religions consider homosexuality abnormal. Of the school curriculum, he wrote: "I refuse to be a false teacher, saying that promiscuity is acceptable, perversion is normal and immorality is simply 'cultural diversity' of which we should be proud."

Those are strong words and, indeed, Mr. Kempling has since said he regrets some of his strident words and unkind language. But publishing strong words in a public forum, far away from the school grounds, shouldn't be cause for suspension.

To be sure, Mr. Kempling's right to free speech may be rightly circumscribed by his duties as a teacher. The Supreme Court of Canada upheld such restrictions on teachers' freedom when it ruled against New Brunswick teacher Malcolm Ross for his anti-Semitic ravings.

But Mr. Kempling's situation is different. He broke no laws, and, while formal objections were raised about Mr. Ross's writings, not one person complained about Mr. Kempling's. Even the BCCT admitted that there was no evidence Mr. Kempling's words resulted in a poisoned school environment, but it concluded that an inference can be drawn as to the consequences of his discriminatory comments.

The BCCT has no business drawing such inferences. And if Mr. Kempling commits no offences and keeps his views out of the classroom, the BCCT has no business taking any action against him, either.

That said, Mr. Kempling is also a school counsellor, which means that he might well deal with children who are wrestling with questions about their sexual orientation. And he has made it clear that he will be guided by his religious beliefs when counselling such students.

After the BCCT delivered its decision, Mr. Kempling sent a letter to B.C. Parents and Teachers for Life in which he wrote: "I am very worried about the plight of children who are confused about their sexual orientation -- they need to hear a message of hope that there are recognized and effective treatments for those who wish to change their orientation."

Those "effective" treatments aren't recognized by the Canadian Psychiatric Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the Canadian Medical Association or the American Medical Association. Those organizations have condemned the use of reparative therapy, the treatment touted by some Christian groups as a cure for homosexuality.

According to the APA, "psychiatric literature strongly demonstrates that treatment attempts to change sexual orientation are ineffective. However, the potential risks are great, including depression, anxiety and self destructive behaviour."

Mr. Kempling, who holds two master's degrees and has completed some work toward a doctorate in psychology, is clearly willing, when counselling his students, to allow his religious beliefs to trump the latest psychiatric research.

That's unacceptable. Mr. Kempling is employed by a public school board, not a parochial one. If he can't keep his religion out of his counselling office, then the BCCT is right to close down that office for one month. And if he continues to let his religion guide his counseling practice, the BCCT should shut down his office for good.

But he should still be allowed to teach as long as he keeps his personal views to himself while he's in the classroom.

Canadian Christianity

Kempling suspended for voicing anti-gay views

The BC College of Teachers has finally settled on a sentence for Chris Kempling, the teacher in Quesnel whose letters to a local newspaper were found "derogatory and demeaning" against gay people, reports The Province. Kempling has been suspended for one month without pay, but it is likely he will not have to serve the sentence for a while yet, since he is appealing the case to the BC Supreme Court on the grounds that the BCCT's verdict violates his freedoms of religion and expression under the Charter of Rights.

Pundits are already weighing in on the case. The Vancouver Sun ran an editorial claiming that Kempling should keep his job as a teacher, provided that he keep his views on sexuality out of the classroom. However, it also said that Kempling may not be able to continue to work as a counsellor because "he might well deal with children who are wrestling with questions about their sexual orientation. And he has made it clear that he will be guided by his religious beliefs when counselling such students. ... Mr. Kempling, who holds two master's degrees and has completed some work toward a doctorate in psychology, is clearly willing, when counselling his students, to allow his religious beliefs to trump the latest psychiatric research. That's unacceptable. Mr. Kempling is employed by a public school board, not a parochial one."

Meanwhile, Province columnist Susan Martinuk says it is the BCCT, and not Kempling, who is guilty of intolerance: "The B.C. College of Teachers (BCCT) seems determined to prove that teachers who are members of the Christian faith are unfit to teach in public schools. ... Despite the assumption of Christian intolerance, there has been no suggestion that [Kempling's] beliefs influenced his teaching. No complaints have been lodged against Kempling; nor have there been in his 14 years of teaching. He counsels homosexual students -- without any complaints. There were no complaints by gay individuals or community groups."

Martinuk also notes that the BCCT has pursued an anti-Christian agenda before, during its unsuccessful bid to prevent Trinity Western University from receiving full accreditation for its teacher education program.

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