2 Fired Oregon Teachers Head to 9th Circuit: 'Clear Violation of Their Speech and Religious Rights'
Working together, attorneys with the Pacific Justice Institute (PJI) and Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) have filed an 84-page opening brief on behalf of two Oregon educators, urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to protect their First Amendment right to free speech and religion.
Rachel Sager (formerly Damiano) and Katie Medart filed a lawsuit in 2021 against the Grants Pass School District 7 in Grants Pass, Oregon after officials suspended and then fired them for voicing their opinions about local, state, and national policy.
The educators filed a lawsuit against the school district for violating their rights to free speech and religious freedom. The district court ruled against them last March, prompting the PJI and the ADF to file a notice of appeal in April.
"The district court assumed facts against Rachel and Katie...by holding that any complaints established disruption, no matter that the complaints objected to Rachel and Katie's views expressed while off campus and off duty," the brief the attorneys filed in Damiano v. Grants Pass School District 7 explained.
"Disagreement with a disfavored political stance or controversial viewpoint, by itself, is not a valid reason to curtail expression of that viewpoint at a public school," the brief continued.
The two teachers had made their opinions known on their personal online platform when they weren't acting as representatives of the school district.
"Public schools can't retaliate against educators for expressing opinions on fundamental issues of public concern—like gender identity education policy—that implicate the freedoms of educators, parents, and students. Rachel and Katie spoke while off campus and off duty, but the school district used its overreaching speech policy to punish them for expressing their beliefs," ADF Legal Counsel Mathew Hoffmann explained in a press release.
"School officials actively solicited negative comments from staff and students after Rachel and Katie expressed their opinions, yet the lower court failed to acknowledge this clear violation of their speech and religious rights," Hoffman said.
"All educators should be free to advocate for solutions they believe in, and we urge the 9th Circuit to make clear that government employers can't discipline someone for expressing her views on such an important issue," he continued.
Brad Dacus, president and founder of PJI said the two teachers should be "applauded, not punished."
"Educators who advocate for common sense and parental involvement should be applauded, not punished," Dacus said. "We are privileged to stand alongside these brave educators and continue fighting for them at the Ninth Circuit."
According to the PJI and the ADF, Sager and Medart have been in the education field for many years, including at North Middle School in Grants Pass. Sager served as assistant principal, and Medart taught science there. Together, the two started the grassroots movement "I Resolve" to promote "reasonable, loving, and tolerant solutions" for gender identity education policy that "respect everyone's rights"—including those of educators, parents, and children.
Their proposals allow teachers to abide by their conscience and refrain from using pronouns inconsistent with a student's biological sex. "I Resolve" advocates for locker rooms, showers, and restrooms to be designated consistent with their DNA-based gender. It also endorses and gives students the option to request access to private restrooms and locker rooms, the two nonprofit law firms said.
CBN News reached out to the Grants Pass School District 7 for comment. Kristin Hosfelt, a spokesperson for the district, replied in an email, saying the district cannot comment on pending litigation.
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