Sunday, August 27, 2023

Peoria teacher sues district after being harassed for supporting transgender students

Perry Vandell, Arizona Republic
Sat, August 26, 2023 

Peoria Unified School District.


A Peoria educator is suing the Peoria Unified School District after they say they faced extended harassment when they sent an email to their colleagues encouraging them to support transgender students.

A group of about 40 people gathered at Calbrisa Park on Wednesday to support nonbinary educator River Chunnui and call for an end to the harassment.

Chunnui was walking onto campus at Desert Harbor Elementary School in Peoria where they work as a special education teacher in 2022 when they noticed two students wearing colors from the transgender flag, they told The Arizona Republic.

Chunnui, who is nonbinary, understood the students were likely wearing the colors in observance of the date: March 31, 2022, Transgender Day of Visibility. Chunnui figured some educators might not have been aware of the day and sent an email to school staff on how they could support participating students.

Shortly after the email was sent, someone posted the message on social media and media outlets. It wasn’t long before the Peoria Unified School District placed Chunnui on administrative leave as it investigated whether the email violated policy.

It was months before the investigation concluded, determining Chunnui had committed no wrongdoing in sending the email.


River Chunnui speaks to a crowd of supporters on Aug. 23, 2023 after enduring over a year of harassment.

Despite the result of the investigation, Chunnui said they faced frequent and scathing harassment, from online threats where people accused them of “grooming” children to having rocks thrown into the windows of their house multiple times.

During a school board meeting roughly a year later, two board members — Heather Rooks and Rebecca Hill — voted not to renew Chunnui’s contract despite district staff informing the board that a separate process was required to discipline employees.

Chunnui ultimately filed a notice of claim against the district — a required precursor before filing a lawsuit against a government body — on July 13, alleging the district violated their civil rights after launching the investigation into the email and doing nothing to protect them from the harassment they received.

The claim seeks $52,000, court documents show. That includes $50,000 from the school district and $1,000 from each of the two board members

The Peoria Unified School District did not respond to a request for comment.

Chunnui told The Republic they found the tires on their car had been slashed Friday while it was parked in the school's secured parking lot.

The incident suggested that previous damage to their car — which Chunnui described as dents one might expect from bashing the vehicle with a baseball bat or crowbar — was intentional as opposed to a negligent driver who left the scene without leaving a note.

Trina Berg, president of the Peoria Education Association, called for the harassment against Chunnui to end at the rally.

“There is no reason to be damaging someone’s property because you don’t like something about them,” Berg said. “Bullying is not OK. We don’t tolerate it with our students and we sure as hell don’t tolerate it with our adults.”

Amber Gould, treasurer of the Arizona Education Association, also decried Chunnui's treatment along with the anti-LGBT legislation being enacted in the United States.

“We need to be even louder,” Gould said. “And we need to make sure that we are bringing people together to make sure this voice is heard. We need to make sure that our schools are inclusive — that our communities are inclusive — and that we stand up against this hate that has taken a political form.”

Chunnui thanked the group for the support as it reinforced their belief that the world can be safer and more accepting of those in the LGBTQ+ community both inside and outside the classroom.

“Clearly there are some challenges and there is work to do,” Chunnui said. “But I believe in the good in people. I believe that our collective voice can overpower the hatred that seeks to allow prejudice and bullying in our schools. Tonight has shown us the very power of community.”

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Peoria teacher River Chunnui sues district after harassment

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