Fresno City Professor Accused Of Teaching Anti-Gay Bias

ACLU staff attorney Elizabeth Gill said at least two students at Fresno City College have complained that instructor Bradley Lopez quoted the Bible as proof that human life begins at conception, characterized homosexuality as a mental illness, and discussed apocalyptic Christian prophesies during a lesson on climate change.

If the students' descriptions are correct, Lopez's teaching methods would violate California laws protecting gays from discrimination and prohibiting religious indoctrination at public schools, Gill said. She sent a letter to college president Cynthia Azaria on Monday asking the school "to act immediately to ensure that all its health classes provide only accurate and unbiased information."

An e-mail to Lopez and a telephone message left at his office were not returned. The college president issued a statement in response to media inquiries.

"The College takes its non-discrimination and prohibition of harassment policies seriously, investigates alleged violations and takes appropriate actions to enforce compliance," Azaria said. "Beyond that, we don't comment on personnel matters for confidentiality reasons."

Lopez is one of several Fresno City College instructors who teach the Health Science I course, which the college catalog describes as a survey of "contemporary science concepts and medical information designed to promote health." Topics covered in the course include sexuality, nutrition, substance abuse, physical fitness and heredity.