When 18-year-old Isaiah Smith (pictured) was bullied by classmates for being gay, the high school senior ripped out pages from his Bible in protest.
Last week, students at Birdville High School in North Richland Hills, Texas reportedly used a passage from Leviticus to justify why Smith is going to hell. Smith, who identifies as both gay and Christian, reacted by tearing out the scripture from his own personal Bible.
“At my high school, some kids like to say that being gay is a sin and that you can’t be gay and Christian. I wanted to bring my Bible to school and interpret the books of Leviticus and Romans, because they are often used to bully gay people,” he told the Star-Telegram.
As a result, Smith was suspended from school for three days.
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His discipline slip stated that Smith’s offense was “distraction and disruption in class by tearing up Bible in class.”
Mark Thomas, a spokesman for the Birdville School District, told Star-Telegram that any student who is disruptive to the learning environment is disciplined as determined by the BISD Student Code of Conduct.
Evidently, the students who initially relentlessly taunted Smith are not considered by school officials to have been disruptive.
Bill Burgess, an attorney from the Washington, D.C, organization American Humanist Association, wrote in a letter that the Birdville district should expunge Smith’s record of the suspension, citing the disciplinary action was a blatant violation of his First Amendment rights.
“Isaiah’s Bible was not the source of disruption,” wrote Burgess, “the bullying was.”
He continued: “Instead of reprimanding the bullies, the school punished Isaiah for offering an alternative viewpoint on the Bible.”
Smith returned to school earlier this week and is reportedly now considering legal action against the school.
Polaro
I wish him good luck.
balehead
Good for him…
Gordon
He doesn’t need luck or a lawyer from Texas. What he needs is the ACLU to get on his side and let fly on the school district. And will they ever.
Dakotahgeo
As a Christian minister, I would hope this young man takes the school district for a few million dollars. Such absurd behavior, albeit usual behavior, by school districts and school boards is par for the course in dumber/less intelligent areas of the country.
Derek Williams
He would never have ripped out those pages if he had not been bullied. I applaud him for standing up to the bullies.
It is outrageous that the school should encourage bullying in this way. Sue them.
RevJames
What can we do to assist? Is there a petition?
http://schools.birdvilleschools.net/site/default.aspx?PageID=1
Let them know what you think of their behaviour and treatment of this young man of courage!
2eo
Every damaged holy book is a victory.
Daniel-Reader
A black student gets punished for tearing up a book written by polygamists and slaveowners. The young man should be applauded.
erasure25
Sue the shit out of them. Make them pay millions for siding with the bully.
Jerry12
The word “Bible” is used to describe various works of Fiction created by putting together bits and pieces of other selected works of fiction, continues to be used by tyrants to control the lives of the general public and to exert pressure to the extent that the oppressed are required to contribute money and goods to support the oppressors. The practice continues today throughout the World by small groups of Male Leaders that exert power over millions of people.
Why any individual person would allow their lives to be controlled by some other person that has no legal, moral, or financial relationship or rights over them is beyond belief.
Kangol
So sad, but yet again, so-called “Christians” are misusing the Bible to torment a gay person.
I hope this young man sues this school district, and I also hope an organization like ACLU steps in to defend him.
Stay strong, young queer brother. Stay strong!
loren_1955
Schools, the center for learning…however, common sense and wisdom seems to be going out the door. Worse, the worst bullies anymore seem to be the administrators and principals of the schools. Sad.
hephaestion
Birdville School District is clearly run by bird brains.
jwtraveler
Gay and Christian. He’s an oxymoron. That said, I hope he sues the shit out of the school and wish him the best. And get the hell out of Birdbrainville as soon as possible.
Eiswirth
So you’re aren’t disruptive if you’re bullying the gay kid? More assholes from the armpit of the country pretending to be Christians.
Cam
Schools will often do this. Bullies are more trouble, sometimes their parents are a hassle. So if you punish a good kid for standing up to them, they figure it is easier than dealing with the real issue.
If those kids were harassing him by quoting scripture saying he was going to hell blah blah blah. They need to be suspended and sent to a continuation school as they are obviously unable to interact with normal people.
tjr101
He’s gay and black in Texas, if that’s not hell I don’t know what is…
AnitaMann
Why would any loving parent subject their child to Texas?
FStratford
SUE THEM!
queertyreader
Honestly, all the teachers and the principal who knew about the bullying and did nothing should be FIRED! Because it is their job to do something.