Virginia teacher fired for refusing to use transgender student's preferred pronouns awarded over $500,000

In Virginia, United States, a school board will have to cough up over $500,000 to a former French teacher who was dismissed in 2018 for refusing to use a transgender student's preferred pronouns.

The teacher, identified as Peter Vlaming, along with the Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), sued the school, claiming that his dismissal violated his religious beliefs.

Religious beliefs vs. gender identity

Under a settlement agreement, the West Point School Board will pay Vlaming $575,000 in damages and legal fees. The settlement also stipulates that his wrongful dismissal will be expunged from his record.

In a statement after the settlement, the teacher said, "I was wrongfully fired from my teaching job because my religious beliefs put me on a collision course with school administrators who mandated that teachers ascribe to only one perspective on gender identity—their preferred view." 

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He added that while he loved teaching French and endeavoured to accommodate every student, he felt he could not comply with something "that directly violated my conscience".

According to ADF, Vlaming was let go after he informed school officials that he could not, in good conscience, adhere to the district superintendent's instruction to refer to the transgender student with male pronouns. Instead, he had "attempted to accommodate" the student by using his chosen name while avoiding the use of pronouns altogether. However, the student and their parents insisted that he must use male pronouns in accordance to the school's anti-discrimination policies.

In an unrelated policy shift, the West Point School District announced it would revise its guidelines to align with recent state education laws established by Republican Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin. These new guidelines permit K-12 teachers in Virginia to refer to transgender students using their birth names and gender, regardless of their gender identity, reports The Hill.

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Tyson Langhofer, ADF Senior Counsel, commented on the situation, stating, "Peter wasn't fired for something he said; he was fired for something he couldn't say. The school board violated his First Amendment rights under the Virginia Constitution and commonwealth law".

He praised Vlaming as a passionate teacher who genuinely cared for his students but "couldn't in good conscience speak messages that he knew were untrue, and no school board or government official can punish someone for that reason".

West Point Public Schools Superintendent Larry L. Frazier Jr. expressed relief at having resolved the issue. Talking to the Washington Post, he noted the agreement would "not have a negative impact on the students, staff or school community of West Point."

(With inputs from agencies)