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Tennessee’s Sequoyah High School Principal Physically Assaults Student Over Gay Friendly T-Shirt

by Will Kohler · October 4, 2011

A few weeks ago at Sequoya High School in Madisonville, Tenn., senior Nathan Carroll was attempting to start a Gay Straight Alliance he was threatened with suspension by the principal Maurice Moser.

Now we are hearing reports that at the same high school last week. Principal Maurice Moser physically assaulted one of his students for wearing a t-shirt promoting the Gay Straight Alliance. Chris Sigler, a 17-year-old Senior, was reportedly shoved, bumped in the chest and verbally harassed by Moser for wearing the t-shirt that said “GSA: We’ve got your back.”

Sigler wore a homemade T-shirt to school last Tuesday that said “GSA: We’ve Got Your Back.” A teacher ordered Sigler to cover up the shirt in the future. Sigler, knowing he had a right to wear the shirt, wore it again Friday, and resisted an order to remove the shirt. Sigler says that Moser then ordered all students out of the classroom, except for Sigler’s sister Jessica, who refused to leave. According to both students, Moser then grabbed Sigler’s arm, shoved him, and chest-bumped him repeatedly while asking “Who’s the big man now?” Sigler’s mother reported that when she arrived at the school, she saw her son seated in a desk with Moser leaning over him and shouting in Sigler’s face. The Siglers filed a report about the incident that afternoon with the Madisonville Police Department.

“All I want is to have a GSA at my school to help stop the bullying against gays and lesbians and their friends who support them,” Sigler said. “The shirt was a way to use my voice and show my support for the club. The way I was treated shows even more why we need a GSA here.”

Tennessee the NEW Mississippi!

Any principal who physically assaults a student needs to be fired, criminal charges should be filed immediately. and the parents should sue the principal and the school district for every cent they have.

Voice your disgust directly to the school. Flood them with paper. Flood them with phone calls. Show them that they CANNOT and WILL NOT get away with this type of abuse to our younger LGBT Community!

Sequoyah High School
3128 Hwy. 411
Madisonville, TN 37354

Maurice Moser, Principal moserm@monroe.k12.tn.us
Rhonda Sarshuri, Assistant Principal sarshurir@monroe.k12.tn.us
Gary Cole, Freshmen Academy Principal coleg@monroe.k12.tn.us

Telephone NumbersOffice:
(423) 442-9230
(423) 442-2383

Tags: bullying harassment LGBT Abuse Tennessee

Will Kohler

Will Kohler is a noted LGBT historian, writer, blogger and owner of Back2Stonewall.com. A longtime gay activist, Will fought on the front lines of the AIDS epidemic with ACT-UP and continues fighting today for LGBT acceptance and full equality. Will’s work has been referenced in notable media venues as MSNBC and BBC News, The Washington Post, The Advocate, The Daily Beast, Hollywood Reporter, Raw Story, and The Huffington Post