KHS Teacher Controversy

[Guest Tom P]

That kid is just asking for a beating....what a dumba$$.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes, perhaps, though I sincerely hope not. And I hope your post is not incite people to do that. But it does take a LOT of courage to do what Matthew did. Matthew, there are many out there cheering for you, for doing the right thing, even if it comes at personal costs.

[Guest Guest]

Back in my day someone would have a foot up this young gentlemans ass.

Probably a parent.

Not today.

So Sad.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Sounds like you grew up in Nazi Germany. They did the same thing to individuals who tried to exercise their freedoms.

So Scary.

[Guest Guest]

David Paszkiewicz should be fired immediately.  Evangelism of any kind is completely out of place in a public school system.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Agreed! I would not want my kids to be taught by this person.

[Guest Guest]

Wow, I didn't know there were so many redneck yahoo idiots in New Jersey - if I didn't know this had happened in New Jersey, I would have thought it was rural Alabama.

Not that anyone gives a crap what someone who is not from your town thinks, but I think this kid was right on.  A lot of us are getting sick and f***ing tired of all you evangelicals shoving your idiotic, primitive beliefs down our throats, and we are going to keep fighting back until you crawl back into your caves and leave the rest of us alone.

If you don't like separation of church and state, then maybe you should go to Iran or Afganistan or someplace like that where the clerics are firmly in charge of everything.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

*Sound of two hands clapping" THE CHRISTIAN RIGHT IS NEITHER.

[Guest Tom P]

How would you all feel if this teacher said that your are all going to hell if you aren't muslim. Would it be ok if he was teaching the proficies of Islam instead of Jesus?

NO, its not ok either way. History is one thing, religion is all speculation, thats why you must have "faith" or it doesnt work.

Teaching faith in schools is fine, teaching specific faith is not.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I agree with the postm but as an atheist, I would like to think that teaching any "faith" is not acceptable. I would like the children and students to be taught to THINK instead. Faith has no place in the school.

[Guest julian]

let me break this down as simply as i can (since it is obviously necessary for some of you). no superstition...hmmm,hmmm...i mean RELIGION, has any place in the educational system. American children are already far enough behind without zealots such as this "teacher" spewing his hate and attempts at separation when they should be TEACHING. were there such thing as a hell, he will be there. however, the christian belief that God would create such a place is proof enough of how absent of God's Love christians have become. DEATH THREATS? To a 16 year old boy because he CONSTITUTIONALLY doesn't want to or HAVE to listen to this hateful, godless, man-made, fake GARBAGE? DEATH THREATS? REALLY? Jesus would be SOOOOOOO proud! and just for the record, i talked to Jesus the other day and he said, and i quote, "there's no way in hell i'm coming back for these people who preach all of this hate in my name". to which i could only reply, "i don't blame you, brother. i don't blame you". Peace...

...and GROW UP!

[Guest Tom P]

I think that the teacher could have been a little more tactful in his statements but they were completely legal. what better place to discuss religion then in a HISTORY class, because as anyone with half a brain can see history is filled with religious conflicts and decisions based on religion.

The kid watever the heck his name was, and btw he is a disgrace to that name, should be punished instead. If hes as right as he thinks he is, then why is at least half the town against him? Suspension, expulsion, i dont care, but something must be done. This whole family sounds a bit shady to me. They should just keep their noses out of things. Theyre from some cult or another right? so of course theyre gonna jump on everyone who tells them the truth, that they will go to HELL if they dont leave the cult.

POWER TO THE TEACHER WHO STOOD UP FOR WHAT IS RIGHT AND HOLY!!!!!!!!!!!

DOWN WITH THE FAMILY WHO GOT HIM IN TROUBLE FOR SPREADING GOD'S MESSAGE!!!!!!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Is there any need to respond to this? It is clear that logic and reason has deserted this person. It is not the kid who is a disgrace, but thw writer of that post.

[PaulinMorris]

I'll skip right past the obvious argument that proselytizing should not be taking place in the classroom. (If that's not obvious, then you may as well stop reading this right now). Instead, I'd like to congratulate Matthew for doing something very scary and difficult. I absolutely agree with those who say he is a hero. There is no way the adult world - much less the media - would've believed him had he not recorded the statements of that very misguided teacher. Eternal vigilance is the price of a free and open classroom, and I applaud Matthew for protecting the rights of fellow classmates - many of whom are, apparently, all too willing to simply let those sacred rights dissolve away. I hope my daughters have the courage to do what Matthew has done. God knows, I probably wouldn't have at that age.

[Guest DeafScribe]

Evangelical Christians:

If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen. If you expect to preserve your right to criticize other faiths and points of view, then be prepared to withstand similar critique of your views.

This teacher can preach all he wishes off the job - and even the ACLU will defend that right - but in school he's presenting his personal view to a captive audience as an authority of the state. You don't get special treatment here - the prosetylizing has to go.

See Iraq? See faith-based civil war in Iraq? See people drill holes in the heads of adherents of different views? This is the inevitable end result of aggressive fundamentalism. Don't kid yourself - it can happen here too. Let's not go there.

We've seen the spiteful, divisive results of 26 years of increasing fundamentalism in our government, our media and our schools. We've seen our national character twisted and distorted by enemies we are coming to resemble - squabbling over whose Big Daddy in the Sky is more valid.

We here in the U.S. can choose between tolerance and belligerence. We just held a mid-term election that is taking the country in the direction of greater tolerance. So try to remember that it's not all about you and your faith. There are 300 million others in this country and matters can get mighty ugly if we don't all make an effort to get along.

You can help by recognizing that public prosetylizing on the public dime is bad news.

[Guest Arthur]

Bravo Matthew! This nonsense has no place in the public schools! Dinosaurs on the Ark---what will the religious right think of next!

[Guest Tom P]

i would just like to say i could care less about what will happen to the teacher.... just remember that your son... has no friends.... your son will get no ***... and please .... buy that little F**K somthing for his face the glair from his greasy face was almost blinding on tv your son most likely eats lunch alone...

KOTW Note: The above post was edited for content.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Guest, you give all Christians, and indeed mankind, a bad name. Stop attacking the persons involved and face the issues. Repeat ten times each hour: religion has no place in a public school.

[Guest the one]

1.  There is no such thing as "premeditated entrapment," and entrapment is a defense only when the entrapment is performed by an agent of the government.  LaClair didn't break any laws by recording the class.

2.  Matt LaClair didn't "set him up"--he doesn't ask questions until well into the recording.  Further, even if LaClair had initiated any discussion of religion it is still the teacher's responsibility is to not use the classroom as a forum for evanglizing.

3.  The recording shows that the teacher was leading the class in a rambling, barely controlled or coherent discussion of Halloween, the Bible, Satan, free will, home schooling his kids, the purpose of public education, and other topics having nothing to do with the U.S. History class he was supposed to be teaching.  In the course of this, the teacher demonstrated that he knows little about most of the topics he discussed, as he made erroneous statement after erroneous statement.  He is clearly not competent to be teaching any of the subjects he was talking about, none of which had anything to do with the subject of the class.

4.  When called on his religious advocacy before school administrators, the teacher clearly knew he was in the wrong, because he *lied about it* and denied having said the things he did.  Only after LaClair brought forward the recordings did he change his tune--and then refused to cooperate, asking for his union representative.

5.  The school administration claims that it has taken "corrective action," but refuses to  say what it is.  The teacher continues to teach the class.

It is interesting that those defending the teacher and criticizing LaClair fail to address any of the above points.

If I were a parent of a child in Kearny, NJ, I would be very concerned about the quality of education being given at KHS.  The teacher in question home schools his own kids, apparently because he recognizes the poor quality of public school education in Kearny.  Unfortunately, it's clear that his kids aren't getting anything better at home.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Agreed, there is no place for this kind of preaching in the classroom, imagine if the teacher was preaching about allah and becoming martyrs. alot of the parents wouldnt be happy then, well the same idea applies, he doesnt believe in christ and he shouldnt have to be taught the bullshit that the teacher preached about, that if you dont believe you go to hell.... Now how would he know where you go, do we even know if there is a god? NO WE DON'T so it has no business inside a US HISTORY class, end of discussion.

And sending death threats to the kid, thats just wrong and all the sick ignorant people in Kearny need to re-evaluate their life

[Guest howard beal]

What is being done with this "student" for embarrassing his teacher, his school and his town?

I'm willing to kick in some money towards a medal.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Guest Guest]

This whole town is sick

[Guest exholt (Ken)]

To Paul and Matthew LeClair,

Huzzah for standing up to a teacher who seemed to forget that the public high school classroom is no place to be discussing one's religious viewpoints, especially in a threatening manner as shown through the transcripts and audio recordings. Teaching religious doctrine is also mainly the responsibility of the parents with assistance from local religious institutions and private religious schools if chosen. It is not the domain of the publicly funded government affiliated public school as it serves as a branch of the US government which has the duty under the constitution to represent ALL Americans, not only those who subscribe to the "correct" Christian or any theological doctrine.

To those that rag on the LeClairs for pointing out the blatent abuse of power and violation of the law, shame! It is those who stand up to the tyranny of the majority who are the true patriots and vital pillars of our pluralistic democracy. People like him are needed to keep the majority honest as they have power in numbers to impose majority tyranny on the minorities unless they are called out and checked on it.

Matthew,

Please ignore the small-minded people in your town and take solace in your family, friends, and supporters. You are also fortunate that you will leave this small-mindedness behind when you go off to most great universities and colleges. Please continue to keep up the good work to maintain the sanctity of our Constitutional Republic and the rights of ALL Americans, especially those who are not in the majority. I wish you the best.

Sincerely,

-Ken

[Guest NOTFROMTHISRETARDEDTOWN]

I hope the teacher wins.

Misguided idea

Some retarded Christian rant...

You're the one that needs intro to constution help

Some more insulting of a boy, for reporting and bad teacher

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

This student doesn't need to be tolerant of anybodies beliefs. This teacher has no right to teach his beliefs.

“If you reject his gift of salvation, then you know where you belong,... If you reject that, you belong in hell.”

Nobody needs to have tolerance for this scumbag.

If you can't handle the constitution perhaps you should leave this country.

The irony of this situation is that this teacher was teaching them about the constitution, yet did not understand it himself.

You people that say that the First Amendment protects him from saying these things are absolute morons. The same goes to the people calling this boy unpatriotic. He is the true patriot, protecting the constitution, unlike you. You should all be ashamed of yourselves.

I love how every single point of yours was illogical, and filled with fallacies.

[superwick]

I hope the teacher wins.

This student needs to learn to be more tolerant of other's beliefs.

If it is his teacher's belief that Jesus was the Son of God and came on behalf of mankind to atone for their sins and that everyone should know that they have been forgiven because of what Christ did, then I do not blame him for sharing his faith with people he meets.

It's his belief that he should do so.

That being said, the student suing the teacher for talking about something that was not in line with his own beliefs attacks the teacher's beliefs.

If Matthew can't handle someone else having beliefs other than his, and has to take the issue to court, then he needs some help.  Instead of spending all of his time talking to daddy's lawyer, this kid should be talking to daddy's therapist.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

wow you're an idiot. as a teacher in a public school he can't be saying stuff in class to all the students like evolution is wrong and can't be proved, dinosaurs were on the ark, you're going to hell for not being a christian, etc. I hope his dad sues the teacher and the school district on principle alone or for some strict laws punishing teachers for preaching in class or spewing lies about how evolution is invalid.

[Guest Kevin in Los Angeles]

As a former member of the military and a Veteran who has endured months of misery "fighting" for this country (not in current conflicts) I salute Matthew LaClair and his ability to act on his freedoms. If it were not for people like Matthew I would have to question the sacrifices I have made so that the people of this country, including Matthew, could be "free".

There seems, to me, to be a great lack of dissent in a country founded on it. What scares me more than the lack of dissent is the overwhelming amount of conformity and the appalling submission to popular opinion. I fear that without more people like Matthew standing up for what he believes in while exercising the freedoms that have been granted him that one day we could easily be watching, on Fox News , an invasion on our own soil. And it would be the conformists of Kearny who would be first to roll over and beg for the opposing force to rub their tummies while they marched through their town because they were too scared to stand up for what they believed in. With that said I leave you with these quotes:

“Great minds have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence.” - Albert Einstein

Let us make no mistake, warriors are servants in a very special sense of the word, for the service they perform is unlike any other. They are called upon to bear unswerving allegiance to a nation in carrying out its political agenda. Expected to risk life and limb with little explanation; to protect their fellow citizens with no promise of acceptance or gratitude; and to surrender part of their own rights and freedoms – all this so that the better part of the people they protect can better enjoy their own. A warrior risks his life – often gives it —for little pay, primitive living conditions, boredom, days of sheer torment and terror, and separation from home and family.

~Cpt. Ron Drez

Here's to all "Warriors" past, present, and future. And to Matt.

[Guest Matthew ROCKS]

Matthew, in a couple years you can escape this backwater of enlightenment. You will be in such a good place, having fought this battle. Meanwhile, all of these incredibly ignorant, pathetic, hate-filled, brainwashed people you unfortunately have to call neighbors will continue to wallow around in their bile filled lives in Kearny.

VIVA MATTHEW!

[Guest Ian]

It is unbelievable to me how much anger and hatred is being directed towards this 16-year old child who exposed such manipulative and patently illegal conduct by this "teacher." Those from Kearny who have been posting against the LeClairs and in support of this proselytizing menace, you should be ashamed of yourselves. The fact that you are so willing to support an individual who is ready and willing to abuse his position and then lie about it speaks volumes; I thank God myself that I don't have to live in such a community. I hope your children manage to grow up free from such unabashed ignorance.

Way to go, Matt. Soon you'll be off to college and, hopefully, away from the small-mindedness exhibited by so much of your community.

BTW, I'm from Michigan, not the East Coast, California, or Australia.

[Guest For Packy]

Praise and thanks to this teacher. Although not yet among our ranks, he is exactly the type of soldier the Fascists for a Brighter Tomorrow are looking for. Mold their minds while they are still young, steer them from the leftist rant spewing from that den of hedonism called "New York" - this is our mission.

Packy, you are welcome, always.

FBT

[Guest kearnysucks]

What the hell kind of teacher teaches fairy tales?

Grow up, you religious nutjobs.

[mptomei]

It's really sad...this 16 year old practically spits on our "Pledge of Allegiance" while many of our fathers were at war at his age...my 87yr old father is still haunted by what he faced while at war-kill or be killed-so he had no choice but to kill --then he took that young mans wallet out and saw pictures of that 17 year old's family and he was devastated.My dad had to live with that for the past 70 yrs and still breaks up when he speaks of it. Kids today, my 16 year old included, and many adults, I think...don't realize what our fathers and their family, went through for this country.so we could be free...but not free to turn our backs on it....Matt LaClair is free today because of our fathers..and he is free to leave this country if he does not agree with what we stand for!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Guest Guest]

I am ashamed that this teacher acted this way in the USA. How patently offensive this must be to the children and their parents.

I understand that person who hold the same religious viewpoint as the teacher might not be offended; but for any one to proselytize "their" religion in a public school is outrageous!

What a comfort it must be to the teacher to find so many similarly wrong minded people who can't read or understand the US Constitution nor the many judicial decisions which have repeatedly upheld every citizens right to keep their own religious beliefs without having government supported institutions shoving one religion down everyone's throat.

It would be expecting too much to expect people who can not understand the US Constitution to be able to understand scientific principles, let alone the scientific theory of evolution, but its absurd that they be allowed to teach in public schools.

[mptomei]

It's really sad...this 16 year old practically spits on our "Pledge of Allegiance" while many of our fathers were at war at his age...my 87yr old father is still haunted by what he faced while at war-kill or be killed-so he had no choice but to kill --then he took that young mans wallet out and saw pictures of that 17 year old's family and he was devastated.My dad had to live with that for the past 70 yrs and still breaks up when he speaks of it. Kids today, my 16 year old included, and many adults, I think...don't realize what our fathers and their family, went through for this country.so we could be free...but not free to turn our backs on it....Matt LaClair is free today because of our fathers..and he is free to leave this country if he does not agree with what we stand for!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

One of the things we "stand for" as a country is the separation between church and state. It seems you are saying because this young man does not believe what you beleive, he does not have the right to be here. I am from PA, reading this story in the NY Times and I am stunned to see the support for the teacher. Is this NJ or Kansas?