Among the hysteria some right-wing organizations are using to campaing against The Matthew Sheppard Act (the pending hate-crimes legislation being considered in Congress), one of their main scare tactics is the perceived loss of First Amendment right--some claim that this bill will restrict what can be said in public, even from a pulput, and open preachers to criminal charges under this Act (ridiculous).
Those same people are not screaming about First Amendment rights in this case in Indiana, however. Amy Sorell, the newspaper adviser at Woodlan Junior-Senior High School, has been suspended ever since she allowed an article that encouraged tolerance of homosexuality to be published without prior approval from the school's principal.
Let's clear a couple of things up:
This is not a process issue. There would not have been a problem if the subject had been almost anything other than homosexuality. The process is being used as an excuse to punish the adviser.
There will be no fundamentalist outcry about First Amendment rights being restricted, not because they aren't, but because of the subject matter. The right-wing does not want limits on expression, but only regarding content that supports their beliefs. Right-wing operatives like the Alliance Defense Fund will be sitting this case out.
Stan Pflueger, president of the Fort Wayne chapter of Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbian and Gays and a graduate of the school district, said he was disappointed with the school system's reaction.
''The spirit of the article is just asking people to consider what your previous beliefs were about this particular subject,'' he said. ''There's a difference between tolerance and agreement.''
Isn't that what school is supposed to do; make kids think?
I think I would have really enjoyed having Ms. Sorell as one of my teachers.
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