Professor speaks out after he says he was fired for teaching basic biology
'Fox News @ Night' panelists Keisha Russell and Dr. Johnson Varkey discuss their case against St. Philip's College
A biology professor filed a religious discrimination charge with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Monday against a Texas community college after administrators allegedly fired him for teaching students sex was determined by X and Y chromosomes.
St. Philip's College in San Antonio, Texas allegedly fired biology professor Dr. Johnson Varkey in January for teaching his students that sex was determined by X and Y chromosomes and that reproduction must occur between a male and a female to continue the human species. Despite the fact that Varkey taught from school-approved and science-based curriculum, St. Philip's College claims his teaching was religious.
Dr. Varkey is a devout Christian, but claims he never discussed his personal beliefs with students. (Courtesy of First Liberty Institute)
"I also explained that when a sperm (which has 23 chromosomes) joins with an egg (which also has 23 chromosomes), a zygote (which has 46 chromosomes) is formed, and it begins to divide, and after 38 weeks a baby is born," Varkey wrote in the charge to the EEOC. "Because no information is added or deleted in those 38 weeks, life starts when the zygote begins to divide, not when the baby is born."
The college failed to respond to a demand letter sent by the professor's lawyers asking he be reinstated for what they believe to be wrongful termination, according to a copy of the charge obtained by Fox News Digital.
In his notice of termination letter, St. Philip’s College said the complaint against him contained several reports of "religious preaching, discriminatory comments about homosexuals and transgender individuals, anti-abortion rhetoric, and misogynistic banter." The college claim he violated "the highest standards of academic honesty and integrity," but provided no explanation or reasoning for its accusation.
First Liberty Institute (FLI), a law firm that defends the religious liberty of Americans, sent a letter to the community college on behalf Dr. Varkey in June, asking that he be reinstated in his role and that St. Philip's College admit his termination "was not for cause but in fact violated federal and state law."
Dr. Varkey had been teaching his students that sex was determined by X and Y chromosomes for 20 years. (BSIP/UIG Via Getty Images)
FLI said the college is participating in unlawful religious discrimination in employment under the First Amendment and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, arguing Varkey "believes that he is obligated as a Christian and as a professor to teach accurate, true concepts that comport with his many years of research and study in the field of human biology."
Varkey's lawyers argue his teachings are supported by his education and experience in the field of biology, as well as his religious beliefs, but added that "throughout his employment, he never discussed with any student his personal views—religious or otherwise—on human gender or sexuality," but argued that his faith and his as integrity as an academic, forbid him from teaching or affirming statements that he believes to be false.
"The actions of St. Philip’s College also have a disparate impact on religious employees," Varkey wrote in his charge with the EEOC. "The pattern and practice of terminating professors because of in-class statements that reflect their beliefs has a discriminatory effect on religious professors like myself."
Dr. Varkey said his firing will have a disparate impact on all religious professors. (iStock)
"It saddens me that we have come to the place where, in an institution of higher learning, the feelings and opinions of the students are allowed to usurp the facts of science," Dr. Varkey told Fox News Digital. "The law protects Americans like me from being punished by their employers for holding or expressing their religious beliefs. St. Philip’s College is sending a message that the facts of science don’t matter and that religious people are not welcome and need not apply."
As an adjunct professor, Varkey taught the same principles he was fired for this year in his Human Anatomy and Physiology to more than 1,500 students during the two decades he taught at St. Philip’s College, according to First Liberty. On November 28, 2022, four of Varkey's students walked out of his class when he stated that sex was determined by X and Y chromosomes, just as he always had during his 19 years teaching at the college.
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"No college professor should be fired for teaching factual concepts that a handful of students don’t want to hear," Keisha Russel, Counsel for FLI and the lead attorney on Dr. Varkey’s case told Fox News Digital in a statement. "When public universities silence their own professors from teaching true concepts to students, education has been turned on its head."
Alamo Colleges District, which includes St. Philip’s College, told Fox News Digital it does not comment on personnel issues.
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