Christian Teacher Who Shredded Schools ‘Pronoun Policy’, Sues School District After Being Suspended

Tanner Cross, a teacher at Leesburg Elementary School, was put on administrative leave last week after announcing before the school board that he would not “defile” God or “lie” to his kids by declaring that “a biological boy can be a girl and vice versa.”

During his speech, Cross calmly and respectfully explained that adhering to the new policies — which require staff to use a student’s preferred gender pronouns and allow transgender students to participate in activities that represent their gender identity rather than their biological sex — would be a violation of his religious beliefs.

Cross was forbidden from entering any Loudon County Public Schools buildings or grounds, as well as attending any district-sponsored programs or events, as part of the ban.

Cross was put on administrative leave by the district shortly after making the speech, “pending an investigation of allegations that [he] engaged in conduct that had a disruptive impact on the operations of Leesburg Elementary School.”

According to Alliance Defending Freedom, the legal firm representing Cross in the matter, Cross filed a complaint against the district on Tuesday in reaction to their actions.

The Alliance Defending Freedom has a petition for people who want to show their support for Cross and demand that the public school learns to respect the First Amendment, end religious discrimination and to reinstate Tanner Cross as soon as possible.

On Friday, ADF issued a letter to the district “explaining that placing Tanner on leave and barring him from campus because of his constitutionally protected speech constituted illegal retaliation.”

The organization demands that Tanner should be reinstated and also warned the district that any further punishment will result in legal action.

In a statement, ADF senior attorney Tyson Langhofer stated, “Public schools have no business compelling teachers to express ideological beliefs that they don’t hold, nor do they have the right to suspend someone simply for respectfully providing their opinion at a public meeting,”

“The school district favors a certain set of beliefs on a hotly contested issue, and it wants to force Tanner to cry uncle and endorse them as well. That’s neither legal nor constitutional, and neither was the school’s move to place Tanner on leave,” Langhofer added.

Watch the video of Loudoun County teacher put on admin leave after speaking out to the school board: