After being fired, a Christian ex-teacher refused to use students ‘ preferred pronouns and hide their “gender identities” from parents. She was paid$ 360,00 in a settlement by the California school district.
The Jurupa Unified School District Board approved a negotiation with former high school P.E. professor Jessica Tapia this year, according to her counsel with Activists for Faith and Freedom. Following the district’s refusal to accommodate her religious beliefs in its trans policies, Tapia filed a lawsuit against the region last year, which eventually fired her.
” Today’s lawsuit serves as a reminder that religious freedom is protected, no matter your job”, said Julianne Fleischer, legal counsel for Advocates for Faith and Freedom. ” If the school district’s steps were authorized, no professor of devotion may become qualified to serve as a public school teacher. Jessica’s account is one of honest courage. She fought back to make sure no other teacher had to give in to this kind of bias and that her university district was held guilty.
According to the lawsuit, problems with the school district started when students discovered Tapia on social media and posted about different topics from her conservative-Christian perspective. Tapia’s social advertising did not make any notice of where she was employed, the problem records. In the end, students reported her to the city, which resulted in her taking paid administrative leave.
The district charged her of posting offensive content on her people Instagram account, making references to her faith in conversations with students, and making provocative remarks about gender identity, according to the complaint.
In a number of successive meetings, the city allegedly gave Tapia pro-transgender guidelines, including requiring her to employ her preferred pronouns, “lie to parents about her child’s gender identity,” “refuse to express her religious beliefs with students or on her social media,” and allowing students to use the restroom or locker room that corresponded to their preferred gender.
The problem notes that as a Christian, Tapia, “believes that God defines animal gender, and that men and women are created in the image of God”.
” Her religion even holds that God created two women: male and female. As a result of her devotion, Ms. Tapia even believes that all individuals, regardless of sexual orientation, race, or female, should be treated with respect, compassion, and love”, the problem continues. However, her faith prevents her from supporting policies that lead to her rejecting her faith, such as facilitating a student’s gender transition or disclosing information from the student’s parents.
Ultimately, Tapia told the district she could not comply with those directives and asked for religious accommodations. The district denied accommodations and terminated her employment, the lawsuit states.
Tapia argued in the complaint that the district violated both her First Amendment rights to free speech and exercise, as well as her rights under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which forbids discrimination based on religion.  ,
Fleischer told Fox News Digitial,” The school district specifically terminated her because of her religious beliefs.”
She continued:
As school districts across the country implement these various transgender policies and threaten teachers and educators with termination from their employment, what we’re seeing is a kind of religious test because, in essence, you must adhere to our own religion or you’re no longer qualified to teach in public schools. And so, Jessica’s religious beliefs become second class to the school district’s ideology as it relates to transgender and transgender policies.
No teacher of faith is qualified to work in a public school setting, she continued, noting that what the district did and this kind of test essentially makes it that no teacher of faith is qualified to do so.
What happened to me can happen to anyone, Tapia said in a statement.
” ]A ] nd I want the next teacher to know that it is worth it to take a stand for what is right” , , Tapia. said. We are seeing teachers ‘ freedom of speech and religious liberty violated across the country thanks to policies that force them to abandon their moral standards. I want teachers to have faith in the fact that the best thing we can do for students is to educate them in truth, not deception.
This is why I’m partnering with Advocates for Faith and Freedom to launch Teachers Do n’t Lie, a resource that will be committed to giving teachers a voice of truth. I’m confident that we are moving forward to make sure no teachers have their faith harmed once more by schoolhouse gates,” she continued.
The Jurupa Unified School District stated in a statement to Fox News Digital that the settlement is a” compromise of a disputed claim” rather than a win for Ms. Tapia.
The District’s spokesperson stated that” Ms. Tapia is no longer an employee of the District and has agreed and understood that she may not seek reemployment with the District.” The settlement certainly does not mention or establish any unlawful or discriminatory behavior by the District. The District continues to deny that Ms. Tapia has been subject to any unlawful treatment or discrimination.
The district has not committed any wrongdoing, according to the spokesperson, by entering a settlement:
The District can continue to devote all of its resources and efforts to educating and supporting its student population regardless of their protected class, as the decision to settle this case was made in accordance with the District’s self-insurance authority and in the best interest of the students. The Jurupa Unified School District is still committed to offering all students a secure and warm learning environment. To safeguard its students and employees, the District will continue to abide by all state, local, and federal laws, including those that prohibit harassment and discrimination.
The case is Tapia v. Jurupa Unified School District, No. 5: 23- cv- 789 in the U. S. District Court for the Central District of California.  ,
