Officials retaliated against Woodstock Union High School coach David Bloch
Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing a snowboarding coach filed a federal lawsuit Monday against Vermont state and school officials after the superintendent fired him for alleged ‘harrassment’ for expressing his view that males are biologically different than females and that those differences give males an advantage in sports, an ADF statement said.
The suit is the second filed on behalf of a Vermont school sports coach fired in a conflict over biological males competing in girls’ sports. Travis Allen, a Randolph soccer coach, received a cash settlement after ADF sued the school on his behalf for defending his daughter’s protest at dressing in a locker room with a biological male.
Bloch founded the snowboarding team at Woodstock Union High School in 2011 and has served as head coach every year since. Under his leadership, the program has had success both on and off the slopes, including a number of individual state champions. Bloch is a practicing Roman Catholic who believes that God created males and females with immutable sex, and that, based on scientific evidence, there are only two sexes, male and female and that sex is determined by a person’s chromosomes. But for sharing those views in a brief conversation with two others, school officials terminated his employment and barred him from future jobs in the school district.
“For more than a decade, Dave has led the Woodstock Union snowboarding program to enormous success in terms of both athletic accomplishment and personal growth of the snowboarders. But for merely expressing his views that males and females are biologically different and questioning the appropriateness of a teenage male competing against teenage females in an athletic competition, school district officials unconstitutionally fired him,” said ADF Legal Counsel Mathew Hoffmann. “The First Amendment ensures Dave, and every other American, can freely express his views on a matter of profound public concern without government punishment. We urge the court to swiftly rule that officials must reinstate Dave as snowboarding coach and that district and Vermont officials cannot enforce unconstitutional ‘harassment’ policies against public employees.”
In February, Bloch and his team were waiting in the lodge for a competition to start. That day, Bloch’s team was set to compete against a team that had a male snowboarder who identifies as a female and competes against females. During downtime in the lodge, Bloch overheard a conversation between two of his athletes about that male competing against females. Bloch joined the conversation to comment that people express themselves differently and that there can be masculine women and feminine men. He also affirmed that as a matter of biology, males and females have different DNA, which causes males to develop differently from females and have different physical characteristics, and that those biological differences give males an advantage in athletic competitions.
The conversation was respectful among all parties and lasted no more than three minutes. It took place entirely outside the presence of the male snowboarder who identifies as female, and Bloch’s team and the other team went on to compete without incident. After the competition, the two teams and their coaches, including Bloch, shared a bus home.
The following day, the superintendent of Windsor Central Supervisory Union summoned Bloch to her office and handed him a notice of “immediate termination,” while admitting that the investigation into Bloch’s conversation was not complete. The notice accused Bloch of violating Windsor Central Supervisory Union Board’s Harassment, Hazing, and Bullying policy and the Vermont Principals’ Association related policy for “ma[king] reference to [a] student in a manner that questioned the legitimacy and appropriateness of the student competing on the girls’ team to members of the WUHS snowboard team”—all outside the student’s presence.
The Windsor Central Supervisory Union Board adopted its HHB policy and procedures substantively verbatim from the model HHB policy and procedures issued by the Vermont secretary of education following a state law requiring school districts to adopt such a policy. Likewise, the VPA adopted the same statutory prohibition of “harassment.”
The lawsuit explains that the statute and policies all contain content and viewpoint discriminatory, overbroad, and unconstitutionally vague definitions of harassment that state and school officials can use—and have used, in this case—to censor protected speech.
ADF attorneys filed the lawsuit, Bloch v. Bouchey, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont. Anthony Duprey is serving as local counsel on behalf of Bloch.
– Most of the content for this news story was sourced from an ADF statement.
Is VT headed for another “Scopes” trial? Perhaps our school boards and administrators need refresher courses in biology and the Constitution.
A Scopes type of trial is indeed warranted. Transgenderism is a religion. It’s clerics may have MD or PhD after their name, but they are still promoting a particular religion in the schools.
There are points here in this national news story that were left out here. According to this article the superintendent may have a transgender child and couldn’t contain here anger. The coach was denied his right to appeal and more. Read it here: https://www.theblaze.com/news/christian-snowboarding-coach-allegedly-fired-over-comments-about-boys-in-girls-sports-files-first-amendment-lawsuit
So thankful there are organizations like Alliance Defending Freedom to advocate for those who know the truth about a male being and only being a male and a female being and only being a female, and who stand up for that in the public square. Period! https://adflegal.org/article/why-male-athletes-who-identify-transgender-should-not-compete-womens-sports
Jeezum Crow!! I must have missed when Vermont banned the First Amendment.
So it has come to this. People losing their jobs for speaking the obvious truth. I realize it has always been happening but not usually this out in the open. Our school systems have decided to be the woke police and fire anyone that utters anything they find offensive. I am SO glad this is being challenged. The next step is to get them (school boards) away from our children. Who appointed them as judge and jury of what is offensive? Way too many big fish in a very small pond.
This has been happening for years. Why do you think people lost their jobs during the Wuhan virus debacle. Why do you think Tucker Carlson was fired from Fox News? Speaking the truth.
More people have to speak up and speak the truth, not only in support of Coach Bloch, but in support of reality and sanity.
THE SECRETARY OF EDUCATION NEEDS TO BE FIRED NOW!
Apparently they don’t catch on too quick in Windsor County. After the former principal Tiffany Reilly had in Ascutney and the inability of Randolph (Orange Cty.) educators and school board unable to define gender and misogyny- Now Woodstock wants a go at wasting tax dollars on lawyers and litigation.
It is the underlying law and regulation cast down as an edict from those high and mighty- under the golden dome that is the problem- and blame can be laid directly at the feet of those that vote these petulant elitist legislators into office.
Too bad there’s no way to wall off Windsor County to let them self destruct. We know that stupid can’t be fixed or legislated away so why do we put up with these people? These administrators all need to be fired or sued into oblivion and shamed for being so ignorant. If these adults are too dumb to know that men can’t be women and women can’t be men they have no right to be teaching children or administering policy at schools. If people want to play make believe they should do it on their own time and not paid by taxpayers to abuse normal people, like this coach because they belong to the stupid trans cult believers. This is not the Vermont I was born into nor do I wish to live in the Twilight Zone with these brain dead zombies who invaded our public school system.
I hope the coach sues the school district and the state association. He was only speaking the truth. Science will be in his side of this issue.
Remember when they all trusted the science for the clot shot? They have their own science. It’s called Science Fiction!. I wonder what it’s like to be a democrat and live in a fantasy world and to be wrong 90% of the time.
When enough lawsuits have occurred, and payments have been made only then will the misguided remember the truth. What’s really sad and painful is what this is doing to the children. The very people we put in charge of the children for most of their waking hours are bold faced lying to them. Telling them not to believe their own eyes.
This will not end.
Maybe. The larger problem is these administrators and school boards are indemnified- and really have no consequence for their actions. Tax dollars are what pays the insurance that pays the settlement. We pay for their mistake- all of us- not just those taxpayers in whatever town these firings occur. Now that Vermont’s education system is essentially state run, state funded we all pay for this abuse.
Is this a matter of political correctness or Vermont attempt to be a kinder, gentler Gestapo?
These adults are doing these kids such a disservice. Telling them outright lies and turning them into entitled, sensitive, abused young adults. Why are these “educators” so hell bent on teaching lies?
Utterly disgusting people!
Until the individuals making these decisions are held personally responsible for their actions, and this financially responsible for any and all damages, nothing is going to change.
Most of the individuals making these decisions are up for election every 2 years and We The People keep re-electing them. Go to the grocery store, a farmers market or a brewery in Vermont and look to your right and your left and see who is responsible.
Our elections in Vt our actually “Selections” and have been for quite a while. I can’t believe the majority of Vermonters keep voting for the destroyers of our democracy..there has been foul play for years.
His one mistake was discussing his views with the team members and he should have known better. However, after all his years of hard work, Dave will now be able to retire early as a very rich man. Good for him.
I agree that Coach Bloch should be compensated in the millions of dollars for his unfair, unreasonable and unconstitutional treatment by the wokemaster demons. However, I disagree with the assertion that he “should have known better” than to discuss his views with the team members. The only way to combat this sort of evil nonsense is for EVERYONE to speak up in the name of common sense and decency. It’s disgusting and shameful that he is suffering for stating his views, but silence is not an acceptable or helpful response. If enough people refused to cave in, even at the risk of unjust punishment, maybe (just maybe) logic and good sense will prevail—although, sadly, the chances of this happening in today’s climate are slim.
I hope that he gets $millions.
This is really sad, as a moderate (and left-leaning on social issues) and military member, I find this very problematic. In head-to-head athletic competition, we generally put men’s sports and women’s sports in different categories for a reason. I wouldn’t expect my daughters to compete against my son in an individual sport. In general, in the same sport, men will outperform women solely through the genetic advantage of testosterone via their XY chromosomal identity. Merely stating the truth of that (scientifically based) should not be a reason for dismissal.
Wikipedia:
“No woman has yet run a four-minute mile.
The women’s world record is currently at 4:12.33, set by Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands at the Diamond League meeting in Monaco on 12 July 2019.[25] The previous women’s world record, 4:12.56 set by Svetlana Masterkova of Russia on 14 August 1996 at Zürich, stood for almost 23 years: Masterkova became the first woman to run the mile in less than 4 minutes and 15 seconds.”
and
“A four-minute mile is the completion of a mile run (1609 m) in four minutes or less. It was first achieved in 1954 by Roger Bannister, at age 25, in 3:59.4.[1] As of June 2022, the “four-minute barrier” has been broken by 1,755 athletes,[2] and is now a standard of professional middle distance runners in several cultures. In the 69 years since, the mile record has been lowered by almost 17 seconds, and currently stands at 3:43.13, by Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco, at age 24, in 1999.[3][4] Running a mile in four minutes translates to a speed of 15 miles per hour (24 km/h).[5]
“
@ Warren
Sadly though, now men who are competing as women will be setting the record for women’s track, swimming etc. These scores will go down as women’s records even though achieved by biological males. And actual women will never be able to match or beat them, no matter how good they are.
This is the first I’ve heard of this. It makes the bill I sponsored, H.513, banning biological boys from competing with girls, all the more relevant.
what happened to his 1st Amendment rights?
Our society generally is fine with having sex segregation in some sports in the interest of competitiveness and safety for women. We have also based the segregation for our changing facilities, multi-user public restrooms and prisons on that same criteria. If it works, dont mess with it. If we wanted to base it on psychology and feewings, then gay men would use the women’s facilities and vice versa, but we know that criteria invites a host of problems SO WE BASE IT ON ANATOMY. It’s not complicated.
I don’t generally like to get into this type of discussion BUT here is a story to PROVES boys have an advantage. In late 1980’s I coached softball at Stowe High School, had a great team, won back to back state championships in 1987 & 88 I think, might have been 86 & 87. I also had a number of girls on these teams that played on the Lamoille County 13-15 year old Little League All-Stars which won 10 consecutive state championships. One of those years the girls and boys asked to have a challenge match after the season was finished. the boys baseball team was not very good, only won a few games. We lined them up for a softball game, I had my best and fastest pitcher on the mound. The boys killed us, I don’t remember the score but it was very lopsided.
please do an article on the principal who was fired in Vermont for saying that all lives matter on her private Facebook page!
We’ve done several, Carla. Quite a story! We were all over it when few were.
No surprise. Vermont’s schools boards and school administrators are nothing if not founding members of the spineless, self-aggrandizing and narcissistic woke-a-doke country club.
what is wrong with the VPA and Vermont school board administrators, have they lost their way? Bringing suite is a must !