HRC Blog

Parents Say AZ Principal Fired For Being Gay

March 19, 2012 by Eric Cameron, Digital Media Associate

Last Thursday, when an Arizona school board voted not to renew the contract of a popular high school principal, crowds reacted with outrage. Now new allegations suggest that Paradise Valley Principal Cynthia Davis may have been let go because she is a lesbian.

The Tucson Citizen reports that on Friday, community member Shelly Hickerson came forward with a letter she had written to the district administration earlier this month. Hickerson sat on the committee that recommended Davis for hire and expressed concern about the way she was "aggressively" questioned by a governing-board member in 2008 who "told me she was concerned about [Davis'] lifestyle."

"I have lived alone since 2005, but I have been in gay relationships prior to that," Davis confirmed to the Citizen. She never suspected her sexual orientation was a factor in the board's decision until Hickerson's concerns were raised on Friday.

"I never wanted to believe that this could be the issue, but I guess I was wrong," she told the paper. "I don’t like this. This has nothing to do with the job I have done as a principal."

Board member Nancy Case has denied the anti-gay allegations. Paradise Valley Unified School District includes sexual orientation in its non-discrimination policy, but Arizona is one of 29 states without state laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Learn more about your state's employment laws here.

H/T Huffington Post