Parents of students attending a Florida Catholic school are up in arms after a popular first grade teacher was fired two days after she wed her partner in a same-sex marriage.
According to the Washington Post, teacher Jocelyn Morffi married Natasha Hass and posted the announcement on Facebook, only to find herself out of her job at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School in Miami.
After losing her job, she posted the devastating news online.
“This weekend I married the love of my life and unfortunately I was terminated from my job as a result,” Morffi wrote. “In their eyes I’m not the right kind of Catholic for my choice in partner.”
While the school sent out a letter to parents saying it was a "difficult but necessary decision," parents are angry about the firing.
“We were extremely livid. They treated her like a criminal, they didn’t even let her get her things out of her classroom,” explained Cintia Cini, whose 6-year-old is in Morffi’s class, adding she had no idea Morffi was gay. “Our only concern was the way she was with our children, the way she taught our children and this woman by far was one of the best teachers out there."
“We were completely outraged, all of the parents,” contributed Samantha Mills, whose child had Morffi as a teacher last year. “This teacher in particular has made such a contribution to the school. She never imposes her personal beliefs on others. She just does everything in love. She has a way of teaching that is so amazing.”
According to a spokesperson for the archdiocese, they had no choice.
“As a teacher in a Catholic school their responsibility is partly for the spiritual growth of the children,” spokesperson Mary Ross Agost said in a statement. “One has to understand that in any corporation, institution or organization there are policies and procedures and teachings and traditions that are adhered to. If something along the way does not continue to stay within that contract, then we have no other choice.”
Regardless, some parents are thinking of pulling their kids out of the school for the overreaction to a same-sex marriage.
“This is really bad,” said parent Valentina Simon. “It can’t be that in 2018 ... they still do this type of thing.”
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