Perhaps you’ve been wondering (as many of us have) when all of the hysteria over LGBT rights–especially as it relates to the transgendered and bathrooms–will die down. We wondered the same thing in the months after the Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage.
Based on what happened last night in Brevard County, Florida, we may have to wait a very long time before some people in this country start to accept others for who they are instead of who they wish they could make them be.
Dean Paterakis is a candidate for the Brevard County school board, and he showed up at a school board meeting so he could speak on the issue of rights for transgender students. All those who wished to make comments were told by the school board chair to please avoid “profane, abusive, or slanderous speech.” But that went right out the proverbial window when Paterakis said:
“The reason why I am here now is that we are not putting children’s safety first. When you say what we need to use language that is appropriate in what we do in our schools (and) should be what we have here. Would it be okay now if I showed a picture of my penis to you guys? Because that’s what happened.”
The board chairman, Andy Ziegler, once again reminded Paterakis to remain civil and watch his language. To that, Paterakis commented:
“We have a teacher who put his phone onto the big screen and showed, what the students say, was his erect penis.”
Apparently Paterakis was referring to a 2014 incident in which a teacher was suspended for 10 days after he mistakenly showed a photo of his penis in class after scrolling through pictures he had on his phone. That image was accidentally projected onto a screen the kids could see.
Once more, Chairman Ziegler tried to calm down and control Paterakis:
“That’s enough, Dean, that’s enough. It’s not appropriate. No, sorry that’s not appropriate.”
Paterakis responded to Ziegler by noting:
“I have a right, I have a right to free speech. I have a right to three minutes of free speech.”
The still angry Paterakis then had to be carried out of the room by several deputies.
Paterakis was arrested and charged with disrupting a school function and resisting arrest. He was released on a bond of $750.
If you want to see a man desperately in need of self-control and education, take a look at this video of the school board meeting:
This article was originally published by the same author at LiberalAmerica.org.