Posted on 10/02/2004 1:06:56 AM PDT by kattracks
October 2, 2004 -- A New Jersey public-school teacher claims she was bushwhacked by her principal yesterday when he ordered her to "get out" of the building after she refused to remove a photo of President Bush and the first lady from her classroom.The White House-issued photo of the Bushes was pinned to a bulletin board that held portraits of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and a copy of the Constitution.
"I wouldn't touch politics in my classroom with a 10-foot pole, but [the principal] felt I was making a political statement," said Shiba Pillai-Diaz, 33, a seventh- and eighth-grade English teacher at Crossroads South Elementary School in Monmouth Junction.
"It was meant to be a picture of the current president, nothing partisan about it," said Pillai-Diaz, a Republican mother of one who volunteered at the party's convention in Madison Square Garden. The controversy erupted Thursday night when a handful of parents objected to the photo during a back-to-school parent-teacher conference. Pillai-Diaz said three parents demanded the photo be removed or complemented with a picture of Sen. John Kerry.
[snip]
Pillai-Diaz said McCartney warned her against telling her story to the press, saying "it will be beyond [his] ability to help" her if she did. She told The Post she was not sure if she would return to school Monday.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Wow...there's a Republican teacher in New Jersey? W's gonna win BIG folks!
Seriously, do you think that, if back in 1996 a teacher had had a pic of Clinton and Her Heinous that this same principal would have had a problem with it? Notice how the article HAS to mention that she's not only a Republican but an RNC volunteer.
bump
Hey Kat - it's called a lesson in civics! Bush is the President and sKerry is not (and never will be!). And I hope it will be a rude awakening for the unprincipled Principal.
I think the folks at NASA have a photo of John Kerry that would look nice on that classroom's bulletin board.
But seriously, notice how the parents demanded only that John Kerry's photo be included if the Bush one stays up. What about Nader? What about all the other candidates? The Democrat parents are the ones who were being political, not the teacher.
Great teachers! They are unable to distinguish between the President of the United States and a wanabee.
I think this the teacher in question is an Indian by birth(most probably from South India)from the sound of her name-ive heard that NJ does have a lot of Indians.
Heck, he's not even a Senator for Massachusetts.
Then the Principal is guilty of a "hate crime"! She should not expect any help from the Teacher's Union - they are stooges for sKerry.
What kind of shullbit is that?
Those parents need a civics lesson: Like it or not, George W. Bush is President of the United States, just like George Washington was! John Kerry is not the president of anything except the John Kerry Fan Club!
Besides, this is an elementary school! What is it that they are accusing her of doing? Trying to deliver the 6-12 vote for Bush?!
Oh, yeah. He's already done so much to "help."
She told The Post she was not sure if she would return to school Monday.
I hope she goes to the wall on this. Teachers get scads of publicity all the time for less.
Hatred? For pinning up a picture of the President of the United States?? Jeez. . .
Hee, hee!
That's what I was thinking. Is she going to sway their vote? These parents are being ridiculous. I don't think it's illegal to have a picture of the current president in a government building, is it?
South Campus
195 Major Road
Monmouth Junction, NJ 08852
732-329-4633
Principal, Dr. Jim Warfel
Assistant Principal, Ray Tucholski
Assistant Principal, Mark Daniels
Assistant Principal, Sondra Hinson
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.