'I Was Fired for Talking to The Triangle'

WIMBERLY, Texas - A wrongful termination lawsuit was filed in Hays County after the Katherine Ann Porter School (KAP) fired art and journalism teacher Grady Roper for "not being a team player." Roper, represented by the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP), says he was actually terminated for talking to The Texas Triangle to assess the rights of his students and perhaps shed public light on what he considered callous censorship of student art.

Last fall, as teens at KAP began the new school year, Roper had a project in line for his students. A bare, 30 x 10 foot wall in the school's hallway would soon be home to a colorful mural painted by the young artists.

By mid September student creations almost filled the mural, a work in progress for two weeks. Even students not in the art classes at KAP took time from their lunch to add their own contributions.

On September 28, an advanced art student, Larry McDowell, added an image of two males kissing to the mural.

"It was not provocative nor erotic, simply two faces with their lips touching," says Roper. "It was no bigger than 2 x 2 feet."

Roper admits he was surprised when he first saw the image, but proceeded to congratulate Larry on a good piece of work. After causing a bit of controversy among school board members and Director Dr. Yana Bland, the mural was white-washed by a volunteer team in the cover of the night.

Students and Roper spoke out against the whitewash. Roper contacted The Triangle on several occasions during the incident. He claims Bland ushered his firing due at least in part to his exposure of the incident to the press.