Director who fired gay teacher at Pfäffikon resigns

Many of them demanded his resignation after the dismissal of a homosexual teacher in mid-April. Under pressure, the principal of Obermatt Primary School in Pfäffikon (ZH) finally threw in the towel with immediate effect. The man explains his decision by “the heavy workload within the management, to which was added a complex school conflict with demands for resignation and media coverage which lasted for months and which exceeded my strength” .

A few weeks ago, a teacher was targeted by conservative parents because of his homosexuality. They couldn’t stand a gay teacher giving sex education classes to their children, even though it was part of his obligations. They then put pressure on the school administration and the teacher saw his employment contract end prematurely.

But an alliance was then quickly formed between the regional Socialist Youth, the Young Greens and other organizations, which demonstrated against the decision of the school management. Substantive debates were initiated, which went well beyond this particular case: “To what extent do parents have a say?” or “To what extent should schools not protect their teachers?” After which the school finally admitted its mistakes.

But for his part, the teacher did not let himself be discouraged. “I like my job. And I won’t let anyone ruin that,” he said. And for good reason, he has already found work. A new position that he will occupy from the start of the school year in August.

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