A one-time Wisconsin principal of the year claims in a federal lawsuit that he was fired from his rural Racine County job in 2023 for being gay, according to a report by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Jeffrey Peterson, who at the time of his firing was a principal in Raymond School District No. 14, claims in the suit that school board members falsely accused him of grooming children because of his sexual orientation.
As a result of their allegedly fabricated pretext for his dismissal, Peterson claims his reputation has been severely damaged and he was not able to find work for more than a year, despite his 30 years of experience in education.
The lawsuit said the anti-gay bias began after Peterson inquired about whether employee insurance benefits extended to his partner.
