NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — The president of a public high school's Christian Club is suing for the right to hold an event at the school to air his anti-homosexuality views.
Jason Aufiero, a senior at Northern Highlands Regional High School, wants to hold a "Day of Truth" next week to present what he considers the biblical teaching against homosexuality.
His lawsuit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Newark, is backed by the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative Christian legal group.
Evangelical Christians have begun staging Day of Truth events in response to the national "Day of Silence" that some districts hold to show support for gay students. That day is scheduled for next Wednesday at Northern Highlands; Aufiero wants to hold his event two days later.
"The problem is that the district has continued to put roadblocks in front of the Christian viewpoint on subjects that are already discussed in the school," plaintiff's lawyer Jeremy Tedesco told The Record of Bergen County for today's newspapers.
The suit accuses Superintendent Robert McGuire and Principal John Keenan of violating Aufiero's right to free speech and religious freedom.
McGuire, calling the suit "overkill," said the district never tried to block the event but only wanted to address concerns about the content involved. He said that Aufiero's parents declined an offer to meet with school officials.
"Knowing it could possibly upset others, we wanted to iron these things out," he said. "But his attorneys feel there's no need to go along with us on these procedural issues."
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