In the latest battle in the campus free speech wars, a biology professor is alleging that he was fired from a public college for teaching the basic realities of biological sex. Lawyers representing Dr. Johnson Varkey say he was fired from the public community college where he taught, St. Philip’s College, for teaching that X and Y chromosomes determine an individual’s biological sex.

“When teaching the human reproductive system, Dr. Varkey… stated that human sex is determined by chromosomes X and Y, and that reproduction must occur between a male and a female to continue the human species,” First Liberty alleges in a letter sent to the college. “In the course of teaching Human Anatomy and Physiology, he made these statements in every class for 20 years, without any incident or complaint.”

“On November 28, 2022, four of Dr. Varkey’s students walked out of his class when he stated, consistent with his study of human biology and his religious beliefs, that sex was determined by chromosomes X and Y,” their letter continues. “Although St. Philip’s College refused to explain any details about the ‘complaints’ directed toward Dr. Varkey, he presumes that the complaints came from these students. In two decades of teaching these basic, unremarkable concepts, no other students have ever complained.”