A high school football coach is suing the school administration for firing him after he raised concerns about his daughter’s seventh-grade history class curriculum. That’s according to Judicial Watch.
David Flynn, the father of two Dedham, Massachusetts public school students, was fired last year after questioning an abrupt change in curriculum in his daughter’s “World Geography and Ancient History” class, according to Judicial Watch.
The lawsuit states that Flynn and his wife noticed their daughter was receiving instruction on issues outside the class description on the school website. It alleges that their child was instead being instructed on issues of race, gender, stereotypes, prejudices, discrimination, and politics, among others.
In one assignment, Flynn’s daughter was asked to consider various “risk factors” and “mitigating factors” that two people – one identified as “white” and the other identified as “black” – purportedly might use to assess each other on a city street. Included among the various factors were skin color, gender, age, physical appearance, and attire. “Black,” “aggressive body language” and “wrong neighborhood” were among the “risk factors” purportedly assessed by the person identified as “white.” “White” and “Police officer” were among the “risk factors” purportedly assessed by the person identified as “black.”
Complaint filed by David Flynn
The teacher reportedly used a “memoji” of herself wearing a “Black Lives Matter” t-shirt in the instructional materials.
Flynn and his wife reportedly contacted the history teacher, the principal of the school, and later Superintendent Michael J. Welch and three members of the Dedham School Committee asking for assistance in resolving the issues with the curriculum.
The Flynns ultimately removed their children from the school.
Shortly after, the school principal, athletic director and District School Superintendent reportedly called Flynn to a meeting and presented him with one of his emails questioning the class material, stating “what are we going to do about this?”
Flynn was fired by the end of the meeting, according to the lawsuit.
Within minutes of Flynn’s firing, the school released a public statement that it was removing Flynn as head football coach because he “expressed significant philosophical differences with the direction, goals, and values of the school district”, according to Judicial Watch.
Flynn alleges that he was fired in retaliation for exercising his Constitutionally-protected First Amendment right to free speech.
Flynn had been the school’s head football coach since 2011.
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Coach sues school for firing in retaliation for exercise of free speech
