In a win for parental and conscience rights, a California teacher fired last year for refusing to comply with the gender-fluid agenda won a $360,000 settlement agreement with the Jurupa Unified School District Board.
Jurupa Valley High School physical education teacher Jessica Tapia became the target of a campaign by pro-LGBT students to pore over and report to school officials her social media posts expressing conservative views on LGBT issues, leading to a “religious exemption” review in which she was asked about her willingness to allow male students in female lockers and withhold from parents signs that their children were suffering from gender dysphoria. Upon answering that she could not do so in good conscience, she was fired.
“Some of the allegations, the evidence they submitted for them, were literally Bible verses that I posted,” Tapia explained in an interview last February. “There were some like that, and then there were some where, obviously on my social media I voice how I live my life and my opinions and my beliefs. And so some of the allegations were that I was not calling students by their preferred gender or pronouns. Which was very interesting too because I had never had a student come to me … with, ‘Mrs. Tapia, I would like you to call me this.’ I’ve never even been in that scenario, yet they were making these claims.”
“I made sure to clarify, too, with this district personnel that were sitting across from me,” she added. “I looked them in the eye and I said, ‘Are you asking me to lie to parents?’ and they said, ‘Yes. It’s the law.’”
Now, the Washington Stand reported that the district has agreed to a settlement amounting to five times the median salary for a Jurupa teacher. The district is attempting to save face by stressing that the settlement does not contain any admission of wrongdoing on its part.
“Today’s settlement serves as a reminder that religious freedom is protected, no matter your career,” Advocates for Faith and Freedom attorney Julianne Fleischer said. “Jessica’s story is one of faithful courage. She fought back to ensure her school district was held accountable and that no other teacher has to succumb to this type of discrimination.”