Gym Teacher Who Was Suspended for Misgendering a Student Has Been Reinstated By Judge

Last week, we told you about an elementary school gym teacher named Byron “Tanner” Cross who was put on paid administrative leave for refusing to call transgender students by their preferred pronouns. 

Cross spoke up at a school board meeting to explain his position on a new policy the Loudoun County, Virginia, school district wanted to put in place. He cited a 60 minutes article and also claimed that calling students by preferred pronouns was not only against his religion but also lying to children and a form of abuse.

After Cross’s speech to the school board, he was put on administrative leave. The Alliance for Defending Freedom (ADF), a Christian nonprofit group, came to his rescue, defending him in court and filing a lawsuit. 

The ADF released a statement on June 8, 2021, stating, “Tanner Cross, a Virginia elementary school teacher and ADF client who was suspended for raising concerns to the board about a proposed gender policy, has won a temporary injunction and the judge has ordered his reinstatement. A massive victory for freedom of speech.”

Michael Farris, ADF’s President and CEO, explained, “Nobody should be punished for expressing concern about a proposed government policy, especially when the government invites comment on that policy. For that reason, we are pleased at the court’s decision to halt Loudoun County Public Schools’ retaliation against Tanner Cross while his lawsuit continues. Educators are just like everybody else—they have ideas and opinions that they should be free to express. Advocating for solutions they believe in should not cost them their jobs. School officials singled out his speech, offered in his private capacity at a public meeting, as ‘disruptive’ and then suspended him for speaking his mind. That’s neither legal nor constitutional. Dozens of other teachers have shared their beliefs on various policies without retaliation; Tanner deserves to be treated with the same respect.”

Watch the video below to heard Cross answer a few questions about this whole ordeal including if he has any regrets.

Do you think the school board was out-of-line to put Cross on administrative leave? Do you think Cross was out-of-line for speaking up at the school board meeting?