Gay Rights Activists, Students Plan Protest

Freedom of speech or crossing the line as an educator?

Gay rights activists plan to protest at a New Jersey Board of Education meeting tonight after a Union Township teacher allegedly posted anti-gay remarks on her Facebook page. Though supporters of Viki Knox say her first amendment rights should be protected, her opponents are calling on the school board to fire her.

Knox, a high school teacher and faculty adviser to a prayer group, came under fire last week after allegedly calling homosexuality "perverted" on Facebook and posting other negative comments about a school display celebrating Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender History Month.

Stacy Hawkins, professor of Law at Rutgers University in Camden, says social media sites and the internet are public domain, "it is increasingly a common area of discipline and even discharge for public employees including teachers."

Hawkins says because the comment was about a school display and not the issue of gay rights in general, there is a strong case for the school board. "This was not a person speaking as a citizen enjoying first amendment protection, this is a public government employee speaking about matters of public business."

Garden State Equality, an organization that supports gay rights, says it was wrong for Viki Knox to write anti-gay remarks on Facebook in her official capacity as a teacher.

In the digital age, Hawkins says people need to realize that what they put out there for the world to see and read is largely public conduct. "There are some instances where if things are password protected and they are only available to your friends, there may be some kind of argument if they are accessed inappropriately by an employer."

However, when they are publicly available or accessed by someone who is your friend, "then it becomes a matter of public domain and particularly in private employment that could be the basis for any kind of employment sanction."

A local lawyer brought the anti-gay comments to the attention of school officials who would only say they are investigating.

No word on what action, if any, the school board will take tonight.