Life
Gay Teacher Responds To Homophobic Mom In The Best Way
She wanted her deposit back. He donated it to an LGBTQ charity instead.
D.G. Sciortino
08.17.18

Teachers not only have to deal with children who can sometimes be unruly but they also have to deal with some pretty crazy and ill-behaved parents.

And I bet those teachers would tell you that the parents are far worse than the children.

Michael Neri, the owner of Talking Props Theatre School in London, had to deal with one of these crazy and ill-behaved parents.

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Michael Neri
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Michael Neri

And the text exchange between him and this homophobic mom has gone viral.

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People are giving the 26-year-old serious props for his killer clap back.

โ€œI was a little shocked to receive the text,โ€ Neri, of Birmingham, England, told Mic. โ€œI felt a little bit, I suppose, disheartened by it and that the decision had been made solely on something that wasnโ€™t about my professional capacity to teach.โ€

Michael Neri
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Michael Neri
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Neri says he created Talking Props Theatre School in September 2014 to offer a local theatre environment in Kidder Minster for children.

โ€œAs a child, if Iโ€™d had something like [Talking Props], I wouldโ€™ve flourished more than I ever couldโ€™ve hoped for,โ€ he said. โ€œItโ€™s a safe haven for people to be able to come, be creative and be around people in a supportive environment.โ€

Michael Neri
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Michael Neri

Instead of lashing out, he took some time to respond to the homophobic womanโ€™s text

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Her message explained that she was taking her kids out of his school after finding out that Neri was gay.

โ€œIt was such a clever and witty response, and Iโ€™m not a witty person,โ€ Neri said. โ€œIโ€™m not going to lie, it was brewing. I got the text early afternoon and it took me a good couple of hours to respond back.โ€

Michael Neri
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Michael Neri
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Weโ€™re not sure whatโ€™s worse, this womanโ€™s bigotry or her stupidity.

Did she really think that she would find a theatre community that was completely free of gay people?

โ€œI find that theatre without gays is like cooking without spices,โ€ Neri wrote in his text response.

Michael Neri
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Michael Neri
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Hereโ€™s what her text said:

โ€œHi Michael. Following our chat this week I have decided that __ and __ will not be attending class on Monday. You have a strong reputation for performing arts which encouraged me to sign my children up for classes. I have recently learned of your lifestyle and as a Christian, I cannot allow my children to be influenced by unconventional to be influenced by unconventional ideas. It is our belief that a man should marry a woman. I look forward to receiving my deposit which you may post me via cheque. Regards ___.โ€

Michael Neri
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Michael Neri
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Neri told Mic that there are plenty of Christians and Muslims who are well aware of his lifestyle and have no objection to him teaching their children.

He believes this mother is in the minority of Christians who are hateful.

And he himself is a Christian. Neri said he was shocked that his response went viral and had the sense to block out her name as well as her childrenโ€™s name.

Talking Props Performing Arts Studios
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Talking Props Performing Arts Studios
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He tried to contact her after the text went viral but she hasnโ€™t answered back.

โ€œIโ€™ve had messages from teachers in similar situations and itโ€™s been humbling to have that,โ€ Neri said. โ€œI take a positive from all this, not a negative. Iโ€™m taking the love and everything thatโ€™s coming from it, not the initial text I got from the lady.โ€

Michael Neri
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Michael Neri
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Neri decided that he wouldnโ€™t give the woman her money back. He instead donated it to an LGBTQ charity.

You can see his original Tweet and full response below:

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