A gym teacher in northern Virginia is fighting his suspension after he spoke out at a school board meeting against proposed policies to address transgender students by their preferred pronouns.
Leesburg Elementary teacher Tanner Cross was suspended after he told a May 25 school board meeting he could not abide by proposed rules that would require teachers to address transgender students by their chosen gender, the Associated Press reports.
Cross employed the aid of legal group Alliance Defending Freedom who sent a letter on behalf of the gym teacher to Loudoun County Public Schools demanding his reinstatement.
The school board is reviewing its policies in conjunction with a state mandate requiring all school systems to update their policies on transgender students. The state mandate recommends requiring students to be referred to by their preferred pronouns.
According to The Hill, the Madison Metropolitan School District in Wisconsin was sued by a group of parents last year for allowing students to use their preferred pronouns and names. The school district allowed students to go by their preferred names and pronouns in their everyday interactions without parental permission.