A high school teacher in the port town of Lavrio, Greece, has been suspended after he being accused of distributing leaflets with homophobic messages to students.
The teacher handed out the leaflets during religious education class and requested that students read out loud. Among others, citing the writings of saints and religious leaders, the text read: “Homosexuals are worse than murderers because it’s better to die than to live and be offended in this way. (…) There is nothing more disgusting, more terrible, more foolish, more dishonorable than homosexuality.”
The text with LGBTQ+ hate comments distributed to high school students in Lavrio, Greece.
The news spread like wildfire after shocked students told their parents stirring public reaction which prompted Education Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis to suspend the teacher.
“The teacher in question distributed a flyer with hate rhetoric to students. Schools are spaces of learning, friendship, respect, and solidarity. The educational community has a duty to respect and uphold these principles,” the ministry said in a statement.
In the meantime, several parents came forward with complaints about the teacher’s conduct which included claims that he had slapped a child during class and distributed pamphlets condemning abortion and adultery, among others.
Several parents said they were considering meeting with the school principal to express concerns about the teacher’s conduct.
Speaking to MEGA television, the teacher said he was merely presenting students with the Church’s view of homosexuality after being asked and that these views were in no way his own.
“This is what I know, what I’ve read, what I’ve studied, what I found on the Internet, and anyone who wants can take a flyer and see the ‘opinion’ of Saint John Chrysostom (349–407 AD) and other Church Fathers,” he said.
It is reminded that earlier this year, Greece became the first Orthodox Christian nation in the world to legalize same-sex marriage, the 16th in the EU, and the 37th country globally to do so enabling same-sex couples to now legally adopt children.
