Minnesota Teachers Union Removes School Counselor for Exposing Transgender Policies: Report

A Minnesota teachers union has reportedly expelled one of its members, a school counselor who blew the whistle on the school district’s transgender policies.

Elementary student counselor Christina Barton received a letter from her union, the Rochester Education Association informing her that she was being kicked out, according to local newspaper the Post Bulletin.

The union accused Barton of violating the National Education Association’s “code of ethics,” saying she “mischaracterized Rochester Public Schools policies and practices regarding LGBTQ+ students, spoke negatively of fellow union members, and spread misinformation about transgender youth.”

“REA recognizes that you are free to hold whatever viewpoints you wish regarding LGBTQ+ students or any other matter, but viewpoints are not free from consequences, especially if they cause or contribute to unprofessional behavior,” the letter read.

The union’s president, Vince Wagner said the union’s executive board voted to expel Barton earlier this month.

“We had a lot of discussion and deliberation,” Wagner told the Post Bulletin. “It wasn’t something we undertook lightly.”

Barton previously criticized the school district for not informing parents when their children change their gender identity.

She spoke to the school board twice on March 19 and again on May 7, the day before the union expelled her, expressing her concerns about the district’s guidelines on trans-identifying students.

“How would a parent know how to request such information if they aren’t aware their child is struggling with gender dysphoria? How would a parent be able to care for and support their student if the school never reached out to them,” she said at one of the board meetings.

Last month, Wagner, the union president read a statement during a school board meeting expressing the union’s explicit support for the district’s transgender guidelines. He referenced the staff at Barton’s elementary school but did not mention her by name.

Barton also spoke to the media about her concerns.

“It seems that in a culture where ‘all are welcome’ and ‘kindness abides and bullying isn’t allowed’ that only those employees who succumb to censorship and intimidation are welcome,” Barton said, according to the group American Experiment, which published a photo of the union’s expulsion letter.

“Following my public statement to the school board on March 19, I have experienced countless retaliatory responses that are unprofessional, inaccurate, and very hurtful to me as a person as well as a concerned counselor and parent who is merely trying to advocate in the best interests of kids and on behalf of all parents,” Barton said. “I love my students with all of my heart and soul; always have, always will.”

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