MICHIGAN: Anti-Gay Counseling Student Wins Right To Sue School For Expulsion

Counseling student Julea Ward has won the right to sue the university that expelled her for refusing to meet with hellbound LGBT students.

A three-member panel of the court said Julea Ward can argue her religious discrimination suit against the university before a federal court jury in Detroit. “Ward’s free speech claim deserves to go to a jury,” Judge Jeffrey Sutton said in an opinion joined by Julia Gibbons and John Adams. Adams is a federal district judge from northern Ohio who was sitting by designation on the appeals court. “Although the university submits it dismissed Ward from the program because her request for a referral violated the ACA (American Counseling Association) code of ethics, a reasonable jury could find otherwise — that the code of ethics contains no such bar and that the university deployed it as a pretext for punishing Ward’s religious views and speech.”

Ward is being represented by the fascist Alliance Defense Fund, who crowed: "Public universities shouldn’t force students to violate their religious beliefs to get a degree."

Cheerleading Squad Disqualified Because of Male Cheerleader

ST. CLAIR SHORES, Mich. (WXYZ) – For 14-year-old Brandon Urbas, making the cheerleading team at Lakeview High was a dream come true.

“It’s my life,” Urbas says. “I love it. I live, laugh, cheer.”

The only male cheerleader on the squad, Brandon says he has received nothing but support from classmates, including the football team which makes sure there’s no trouble.
“They just tell me that if I have any problems to let them know and they always have my back,” Urbas says.
But trouble did come when his cheerleading team took part in a recent competition in Port Huron against other Michigan high schools.

Brandon’s entire team was disqualified from the competition because of his presence on the team. A statement defending the decision read, “Boys may not participate on a girls team in MHSAA sponsored postseason meets and tournaments. Schools have adopted this position to preserve participation opportunities for the historically underrepresented gender.”

In almost any other sport, we’d be inclined to agree that female athletes are the historically underrepresented gender. But in cheerleading? Come on!

Let Brandon cheer his little heart out. His team, his school, me as one of hismany  fairy gay blogmother  who support him, so what is the problem here? Brandon’s principal is totally willing to go to bat for his peppy pupil, questioning why the team was even permitted to compete if male cheerleaders face an outright ban.
And just to hammer home the emotional component of this story:

As friends show their support on Facebook, Brandon says he was devastated when he found out the team was disqualified because of him.

“I cried,” said Brandon. “I felt like they were taking away my dream of being able to do it in college and getting scholarships.”

Stephen Colbert Destroys Michigan GOP For Faux Anti-Bullying Law

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Michigan Passes “License to Bully” Law. Exempts Religous and Moral Bullying From Being Punished

The Michigan GOP controlled Senate has passed a piece of “supposed”anti-bullying Legislation that exempts statements based on moral convictions of any school related person from being charged as bullying.
The amended bill, SB 137, which does nothing advocates have pushed for — including reporting requirements and enumeration, or listing, of protected classes. “This section does not prohibit a statement of a sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction of a school employee, school volunteer, pupil, or a pupil and parent or guardian.”
In other words the law is a joke and it actually provides protection for children and adults to abuse and harass gay kids
Senate Gretchen Whitmer (D-East Lansing ) slammed the Republicans over the amended language.

“Here today you claim to be protecting kids and you’re actually putting them in more danger,” Whitmer said. “But bullying is not OK. We should be protecting public policy that protects kids — all kids, from bullies — all bullies. But instead you have set us back further by creating a blueprint for bullying.  You may be able to pat yourselves on the back today and say that you did something, but in actuality you are explicitly outlining how to get away with bullying,” she said. “Your exceptions have swallowed the rule. As passed today, bullying kids is OK if a student, parent, teacher or school employee can come up with a moral or religious reason for doing it.”

Kevin Epling, an East Lansing parent whose son committed suicide as a result of bullying stated:  “I am ashamed that this could be Michigan’s bill on anti-bullying, when in fact it is a ‘bullying is OK in MI’ law,”