Father demands court force board to alert him to 'false teachings' on sex and gays

Protesters gather out front of the Sopinka courthouse on Thursday.

A Hamilton father wants the courts to find the public school board violated his Charter rights by refusing to notify him in advance of activities that might cover "false teachings" according to his religion so he could pull his children out of class.

Steve (Eustathios) Tourloukis, who mounted his constitutional challenge in 2012, had his case heard in Hamilton's Superior Court on Thursday.

His concerns include the gay lifestyle, non-traditional marriages, sexuality and abortion.

His lawyer, Alberto Polizogopoulos, argued it was a simple request.

But the school board's lawyer said the request was vague and "framed in a way where it is impossible to manage."

The teachers' union lawyer called it "not only unreasonable, but also unfeasible."

Polizogopoulos described the Hamilton-Wentworth District Public School Board's position like this: If the request were granted, it could hurt other students' feelings if he pulled out his children — who were then in JK and Grade 2 at Gordon Prince elementary.

"The only thing the school board considered was the feelings of these hypothetical children who might be offended by (Tourloukis') belief," he said.

"The school's erroneous or speculative belief that other kids would be discriminated against led them to say 'no exception.'"  (more...)

Father demands court force board to alert him to 'false teachings' on sex and gays