In 2011, when administrators at Nautilus Middle School in Miami found out substitute teacher Shawn Loftis used to do gay porn, they fired his ass and told him he couldn’t work in the school system for at least five years.
Well, his sad story has a happy ending (no, not that kind): Loftis, who starred in and directed movies like Mo’ Bubble Butt and Desperate Husbands under the alias Collin O’Neal, has been reinstated—and invited to apply for a full-time teaching position by the Florida Education Commission.
L.A. Weekly touched base with Loftis, who said he’s “proud of his state” for reinstating him:
The key point is that they said when you go back to the classroom and a student brings this up to you, you will be able to handle that. I thought that was highly progressive of them.
Florida has a so-called “moral turpitude” rule for educators, meaning they can be canned if they’re discovered doing something immoral. (Which, in Florida, could mean voting Democrat.) But, as Loftis told the paper, most cases involve felonies:
How about we take this to the next level?
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“There’s no debating whether you were convicted of using drugs or stole something. But there is debate on whether my past was illegal. It was not. Porn is not illegal.”
The way some people act, you’d think it was.
stevoj
“Which, in Florida, could mean voting Democrat.”
*sorority hand wave of agreement*
JAW
Funny… here is a man that is trying to move on from his past. Queerty again gets a bit snarky… instead of supportive… Perhaps a pic of him in shirt and Tie would have been a great place to start
cletus
Florida and the rest of the south are America’s toilet
CHIP1218
When I moved to Florida (Tampa area) a few years ago, the guy who took my photo at DMV said while looking at my registration “Democrat, we hang Democrats down here!”
JT
As a gay man I have to say that the absolute narcissistic attitude of these guys that do porn then think “oh I can have a real career ” is disgusting. These guys get treated like celebrities by the gay community because of their looks get anything they want then when they get to old to cut the mustard they whine and bitch about being judged. Shawn your a whore and I wouldn’t want my kids in your class either not because your gay but because you have no morals. You hot shots think the world revolves around you well it doesn’t. You danced the danced now it’s time to pay the fiddler.
Oh, ok.
@JT: As much as I enjoy porn I agree.
If you go into porn then you shouldn’t expect to be able to work with kids or go into politics without it coming up. Really not worth crying about reality.
It’s like the millions of people slapping freaky pictures of themselves on the internet and then crying later on when that picture comes back to bite them in the ass.
Sukhrajah
Ok, so I am not yet a father, and I am queer. So, both of those probably tarnish my opinions a bit, and probably show the bias here, but I don’t have a problem with him teaching. In many cases, it allows him a better vantage of the world, and his past career does not diminish his current faculties or abilities. Doing porn does not make him less mature, intelligent, or a worse educator – all of the truly important skills necessary for his current job.
Per the article, “Florida has a so-called “moral turpitude” rule for educators, meaning they can be canned if they’re discovered doing something immoral.”. Key point to note, doing signifies present tense, and as far as I know – he is a retired porn star, thus making his career a part of his past.
Also, let’s tackle the ‘immorality’ of his actions. Is the making of porn immoral? That is highly dependent on that persons views of morality. He makes a great point in stating that he has done nothing illegal.
He raised another point, that if a student brought his past to his attention – that he would handle it well. If I were in his shoes, I would remind the student that this material is illegal for them to view and that it (at the middle school level) is not appropriate to discuss.
Katt
I live in FL and work with teachers. Those “moral turpitude” rules are used so biasly. There are teachers who get DUIs and have Facebook pics in strip clubs. They are still working! I had a friend who was fired for a picture of him and his boyfriend on the beach in speedos. I seriously feel that the administration who decides what’s “moral” is very homophobic. If its a hetero offence “its their personal time”. If its a gay offense, “oh no thats unacceptable.”
FYI I don’t agree with this guy teaching again. If a teacher had a sex tape out, she/he is not fit to teach anymore. This is the same thing. It’s going to be a disruption every year.
BubbasBack
It´s simple kids. Don´t do porn if you want to move on and work with the public, especially children! Become a zookeeper and take care of the monkeys. Burp.
Eric
@JT: Your an asshole. With gays like you Maybe we don’t deserve any rights.
lohen
@Eric: here here!
he can teach my kids, it’s not the end of the world.
commentfromme
@JT: Really? Would you say this to an athlete, or a policeman who gets a second job after he retires from the first one? Could it be he was doing this to just pay for his college education? Are you going to punish him because he had a “marketable” skill?
commentfromme
@JAW: I have to agree that it would have been nice to see a more current picture of him in teacher mode.
Gene in L.A.
@commentfromme: Maybe you’re just getting your news from the wrong source. If you don’t want a gay slant, you definitely are in the wrong place. Unless it involved a crime, what any teacher did prior to teaching is and should be irrelevant.