UK school official suspended after questioning why parents weren't consulted about LGBTQ books

A U.K. school official was suspended after questioning why parents weren't consulted about LGBTQ books becoming part of the school library's reading list, Christian Concern said.

Maureen Griffith, 74, has been a governor at Alperton Community School in Brent, North London, since the early 1990s, Christianity Today reported. She helped shape the school's curriculum, pioneered the school's health and safety policies, and introduced better disabled access, Christian Concern said.

What happened?

According to Christian Concern, Griffith received a booklet from the school's library noting its staff planned to introduce reading lists for LGBTQ+ Pride Month.

Then at the governors' meeting on May 1 of this year, Griffith told the outlet she "said that parents had not been consulted [about the books] and that there would be parents with children from religious backgrounds who would object and not want their children to have this form of sex education. I urged them to consider those families and added that as a parent myself, I would not have wanted my sons to be reading LGBT books or to be involved in an LGBT Pride month."

She told Christian Concern that immediately "a member of staff stood up and left the room, and the clerk of the school began to rage at me saying: 'Look what you've gone and done, you've upset him.' She then told me that I should be accepting of what was happening as it is law."

On May 21, the outlet said Griffith got a suspension letter from school clerk Jo Sattaur saying she "breached the Governors Code of Conduct and made homophobic comments at a public meeting that were offensive to members of staff" and that an investigation would commence.

But the former nurse told Christian Concern she's heard nothing since.

“My mother always taught me that things have to be done properly," Griffith noted to Christian Concern. “Therefore, whether as a nurse where I am responsible for patient safety or as a governor where I am responsible for a child's education and shaping the school environment, it is my job to notice things that others do not. In meetings where someone may want to push something through, I scrutinize, and this leads to discussion, debate, and finding consensus on the right way to move forward."

She added to the outlet that “when they told me I had been 'homophobic' for scrutinizing the introduction of LGBT Pride month, I had to go home and look up what it meant. I couldn't believe it. It never occurred to me that I could be 'homophobic' or scared of something. These things don't come into my head. But now with this LGBT agenda — not just in schools, but across society — there is no debate, no questioning, and there is only a one-way democracy."

Griffith also told Christian Concern that she's “at peace over the whole situation. I am not annoyed; I am only saddened that this is happening in this country. My faith in Jesus is very important to me in good and bad times — it is my be all and end all. I can do nothing without his help, and he makes my burden lighter. This is how my mum brought me up."

What did the school have to say?

According to Christianity Today, Alperton Community School issued a statement saying it's "unable to comment on specific details relating to members of the school community for confidentiality and data protection reasons. However, we confirm that the school adopts the National Governance Association Governors Code of Conduct and that where complaints are raised in respect of governors, the school would always consider whether an impartial and independent investigation is necessary. We further confirm that the school's policies and resources are regularly reviewed and are wholly appropriate for the school community."

(H/T: Life Site News)