MOSES LAKE, Wash. — A science teacher who has been suspended since January, apparently for a derogatory crack about LDS Church-owned Brigham Young University, was carried out of a Washington high school after "initiating a riot," officials said.
Four school personnel at Moses Lake High carried Samson "Sam" Lyman out of the building by his arms and legs Wednesday after he burst through the cafeteria doors and began yelling that he had been treated unfairly, peppering his language with obscenities, principal Dave Balcom said.
"When (school officials) approached him, he jumped on a chair and started initiating a riot in our school commons," Balcom said. "Unfortunately it led to us having to remove him."
Outside the building, Lyman was met by a police officer who escorted him off campus. Prosecutors will decide whether to charge him with trespassing and disorderly conduct, police Capt. James Jenkins said.
In an interview, Lyman said he was not arrested but added, "I was barred from every school building in the district."
Lyman later returned to the public sidewalk outside the school and resumed a sign-carrying protest that began days earlier, complaining that district officials in this eastern Washington town never provided a written explanation for his suspension.
Balcom and Superintendent Steven Chestnut confirmed that Lyman was on paid leave.
Balcom said he called an emergency staff meeting immediately after Lyman was evicted to provide some details on the administrative action against the teacher, who started working at the school in September.
"I feel bad for the kids, they had to experience that," he said. "This should not happen in a public school."
In the local newspaper, the Columbia Basin Herald, Lyman said he was suspended Jan. 30 following student complaints. They included a remark he made about BYU.
"I told a joke about BYU. I called them Breed 'em Young University," he said. "I acknowledge I said that. I didn't say it to be offensive to the Mormon faith. ... I sure do (regret it). I've never been out to hurt anybody's feelings."
Lyman said 79 students were interviewed over a three-day period. The number of complaints grew from four to 24 and then was reduced to only a few.
"I think it's a form of religious discrimination against me as an ex-Mormon," he said. "I feel I've been tried and convicted in this community. I will never know who made these false comments."
Lyman said he still had plenty of student support. "I've had 52 students today come up to me and tell me I'm the best science teacher they've ever had," he said.
The old joke wasn't funny to a couple of BYU professors, but they didn't consider it offensive.
"It's kind of tired," said Eric Eliason, an English professor who specializes in folklore and humor. "It's not any sort of new, shocking thing at all. It seems like kind of an obvious play on the acronym that's mildly amusing and really not that funny. It's really an example of folk speech and playing with acronyms."
In fact, it's a common joke among Mormons, but many wouldn't appreciate others using it.
"It's something that BYU students themselves call BYU," Eliason said. "Scholars of folk humor call it the exoteric-esoteric factor in the telling of jokes. It's that idea that if you're an insider you can joke about things that are different if an outsider says it."
A religion professor who specializes in outreach and interfaith relations said the joke is inaccurate — Mormons are marrying and having children later and later in life — and divisive.
"Such generalizations rarely help to communicate anything," Robert Millet said. "It's like any categorization or pigeonhole or demonization you want to make: They are generally not very helpful because you're drawing a generalization that doesn't hold much water.
The same goes for Mormons, he said. He has counseled BYU students against stereotyping people of other faiths. And he said they shouldn't be hurt by Lyman's comment.
"We blow that off and go about our business," he said. "There's much more important stuff to do."
Contributing: Tad Walch, Deseret Morning News