He called the parents of his new student to discuss their child’s behavior in class. But their meeting soon led to a serious problem that involved his job and individuality!
The New Kid on the Block
OP (Original Poster) is an art teacher at a school in a small town. Before posting this story on Reddit, he recently welcomed an 8-year-old student to his class.
A New Environment
The child had been homeschooled all his life. However, begged his parents to let him go to a normal school with his friends.
Everything’s Great Except One Thing
OP described the new kid as great and has already fit right in with the class, and for someone who’s his age, he has natural talent. However, OP has one issue with him: he does not ask permission to leave the classroom, so whenever he needs to go to the restroom, he just goes.
The School’s Code of Conduct
OP’s not the kind of teacher who’s strict and needs everything to be done “his way.” However, their school administration has a strict policy for students roaming outside classrooms during classes.
What Should We Do About It?
So, OP asked the new student’s parents to come to school to discuss the matter. He hoped they could try and get them to help him figure out a way to get their kid to follow that specific rule.
Not as Nice as They May Seem
They seemed like good people when they arrived, but when they saw OP’s photo with his 31-year-old husband on his desk, they flipped. They asked who he was, and OP answered them honestly, as it had never been an issue before.
Proving Their Prejudice
Unfortunately, he was wrong about his student’s parents. After their discovery, the parents went on to call the school and reported him for “inappropriate behavior in the classroom.”
OP wrote, “Mind you, I do not talk about my husband in class. I am there to teach, not preach.”
I’ll Give You What You Want
The administration is definitely on his side, but the kid’s parents have sent a few “rude” emails to his school-provided account.
So, OP said, “I would like to honor their wishes that their child not be ‘exposed’ to my ‘disgusting lifestyle.’”
Involving the Poor Child
Ultimately, OP asked for the child to be removed from his class. OP knows he may appear wrong because the kid is a good student, but he doesn’t feel comfortable with him in his class.
The child loves art class, and OP is the only art teacher. That would mean that the student would be entirely removed from the course, which OP knows isn’t fair to him.
Serious Accusations
However, it also isn’t fair that OP is being called a “groomer” and accused of working in a school to “corrupt innocent minds with ‘his’ filth.”
Far From the Problem
Everything went downhill from there, and the parents even requested OP be fired and replaced.
So, now, OP’s talking to a lawyer and has decided to move after the school year ends and go to a place a bit “bluer.” He wrote, “We are for sure moving; it’s gotten bad. Also, to everyone saying I deserve this for ‘flaunting my s********,’ eat a bag of d****. You are part of the problem.”
What Redditors Think of the Issue
Given how the kid’s parents treated him, the community agreed with OP and said it was only reasonable for him to react that way.
The top commenter wrote, “Not the a**hole. I’d also want to distance myself from such parents. Unfortunately, the only person who will really be affected by their madness is their child. And I don’t see how having a picture of yourself with your husband is so wrong. Unless you’re naked on a bed with him.”
The School’s Responsibility
Some people pointed out that the school should’ve acted on it, and OP should not have had to tolerate the harassment he’s been receiving.
A Redditor wrote, “This is something for the school administration to handle. You should not have to put up with this kind of harassment. They need to make it stop one way or another.”
Aware and Careful
Other Redditors advised OP to be careful and not give the student’s parents any reason to accuse him of any inappropriate behavior.
“Not the a**hole. I would recommend that you make sure that you are never alone with the child in case his parents try to claim that you engaged in inappropriate behavior. If the child wants to speak with you alone, make sure the principal or another teacher is present,” a commenter advised.
The Bad Guys
Lastly, the community expressed their worry for OP that if he chose to remove the kid from his class, that might prove to the parents that they were right all along.
A Redditor commented, “If they don’t want their son to be in your class because you are gay, then they need to be adults and tell the school to switch his class instead of sending you hateful, h********* emails. To be honest, the school should have already moved him, given that they know about the parents’ behavior.”
The same person added, “I worry that if you request he be removed, his parents will feel like they have ‘won,’ and that’s not fair to you. Let the kid’s parents be the ‘bad guys.’ My judgment is not the a**hole, and I feel sad for both you and your student.”
Do you think OP’s the a**hole in this situation? Do you have any advice for him?
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This post first appeared as A Queer Art Teacher Wants a Student Removed From His Class After His Homophobic Parents Accused Him of “Corrupting” Innocent Minds With “His Filth” and “Disgusting Lifestyle!” Was He Wrong? on Quote Ambition.
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