North Carolina parents criticized a charter school for outing their six-year-old nonbinary twins after discovering an online hate campaign.
Mortellus, 42, who did not want to reveal his full identity, said they didn’t think there was any problem when they first visited Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy in Forest City, North Carolina, with his spouse Joe.
During the visit, Mortelo – who is he Transgender and non-binary – He asked if there were gender-neutral bathrooms. The couple told staff that their children are non-binary and that one is genderfluid.
The couple said they were confident that although the school is still in the process of adding an ADA-compliant family bathroom, there are already individual bathrooms in each classroom.
But about a month later, Mortellus discovered that her children’s gender identity had leaked to parents, many of whom began speaking out against the school enrolling their children.
Mortellus claims they and their spouse, Joe, toured a school for their children and asked about gender-neutral bathrooms, only for other parents to find out.
“When I saw it all… I just sat there in silence for a moment, feeling like my stomach was hitting rock bottom.” they told Buzzfeed.
‘I felt nauseous. I felt sad. I struggled with myself over what the right reaction was… but I settled on anger.
“They had all put my children in danger and the school had done nothing to inform us.”
Mortellus, an author who describes himself on Instagram as a “witch, necromancer, mortician and medium,” said they thought the school was accommodating when they first visited the charter school.
They also asked about school uniforms and how children are classified.
“I noticed that my children, regardless of their assigned gender, liked to wear skirts and dresses frequently, and I was informed that the uniform policy was gender-neutral and would not be a problem,” Mortellus wrote.
“I asked if the students are sorted by gender (boys line up here, girls line up there) and said that one of my twins had been quite fluent with pronouns, moving around whenever he felt like it, and had only recently settled in a preference.”
Once again, Mortellus said, they were informed that the uniforms were not gender-specific, and a staff member allegedly told them that they “already felt very protective of them.”
Mortellus said they also asked about school uniforms and how children are classified at Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy.
But when Mortellus joined a Facebook group to find used uniforms, they said they found groups where parents were complaining about a non-binary student joining the school and what they saw as a push to make bathrooms neutral. regarding gender.
Some also circulated an online petition. asking the school to change its stance on allowing gender-neutral bathrooms and having teachers and students “use preferred pronouns.” He garnered 1,300 signatures before being removed. according to the WSPA.
One of the groups was even created by someone who identified themselves as a school staff member, Mortellus said.
Eventually, the issue became so hot that school officials held a meeting in May for parents to voice their concerns.
Mortellus said his children are non-binary and one is genderfluid
A speaker at that hearing accused the family of living “in a world of imagination.”
“They don’t understand the concept of sex until they’re eight or nine years old,” the father said, WSPA reports.
Another argued, “If we can’t push religion… they shouldn’t be able to push an agenda,” and a third even said they would take their children out of school “if this comes to fruition.”
Only one speaker in the audience was in favor of including gender-neutral bathrooms and allowing twins to join the student body.
‘According to the TJCA handbook…every student has the right to an environment that fosters learning and is free from destruction,’ the community member said.
Mortellus is an author who describes himself online as a “witch, necromancer, mortician, and medium.”
Mortellus is now trying to counter those claims.
“It’s been assumed that I walked through the school gates like a cartoon villain shouting ‘HERE ARE MY DEMANDS,’ but that’s not true at all,” the author told Buzzfeed.
“I toured the school, chatted informally with staff and hoped to ensure that my children received a good education and did not receive more than what school policies already allowed and the same amount of support and protection that other children in the school enjoy.”
They noted that no rules or policies have changed at the school, and kindergarteners “already have gender-neutral bathrooms and always have.”
Mortellus said one of his sons wants to be an astronaut, while the other is a math genius.
Mortellus went on to respond to some of the specific claims made about his family, including that the children are “too young” to understand gender.
“In terms of simple child development, we know that children already have a pretty clear idea of gender identity by age three,” they said.
“Society doesn’t really care about children ‘getting’ heteronormative barriers because that fits within the hegemony, but when it comes to an outside group like my pagan family with a different idea of morality, ethics, the world in general, suddenly that understanding is villainized,’ they said.
Mortellus also argued that those who are against allowing their children to enter school are trying to protect “Christian ideas about gender and sexuality, and we do not share those beliefs… we are not Christians.”
“Our faith protects the right to express ourselves as we see fit, not as someone else’s god imposes on us.”
School officials said they have followed “all applicable state and federal laws.” Pictured: Lisa Strepp, director of the Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy
“This is as simple as letting the kids just… be,” Mortellus said, noting that one of his sons wants to become an astronaut, while the other is a math whiz “literally doing algebra at age five.” “.
“For me, the happiest thing in the world is to look at any of those kids and know that they are living their best life and exploring who they are,” they said.
“Very few people have that opportunity and I’m very happy that they have it.”
In a statement to the WSPA, school officials noted that it “follows all applicable state and federal laws.”
A spokesperson noted that facilities already have single-stall bathrooms for students who choose to use them, while others have multi-stall bathrooms for each gender.
It was also reported that the school allows parents to decide whether they want their children to be included in a certain curriculum, and said: “Instruction on gender identity, sexual activity or sexuality will not be included in the curriculum provided from kindergarten infants through fourth grade, regardless of whether the information is provided by school personnel or third parties.’
DailyMail.com has contacted Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy for additional comment.
