Reinstate D. Bellamy DIrector of Rowing at Brisbane Boys College

I urge people to read the news articles covering the sacking of a Rowing Director, who used a colloquial word for penis in addressing a group of students, and was sacked.  The Rowing Director was forced to find a way to communicate with the boys about a sensitive subject (not displaying their penis' during rowing camp) because of a silly incident (boys being boys) that ocurred at a prior camp.

http://www.news.com.au/national/queensland/sacked-brisbane-boys-college-rowing-coach-david-bellamy-wants-his-job-back/story-fnii5v6w-1226835432483

Here I quote :

Mr Bellamy, 48, he was told by headmaster Graeme McDonald he was no longer welcome at the church school because he used the word “wanga”, slang for penis, in a boatshed talk with 50 rowers about poor behaviour at a previous rowing camp.

Mr Bellamy said he understood that his dismissal came down to the use of a single word and some parents wrongly believed he must have done something worse.

He said: “I used the slang term for the word penis. I called it a wanga.

“I was told by Mr McDonald that in a boy’s education in a church school there was no place for the word. It had to be a clinical anatomical description: penis.

“I was thinking, ‘Is that it? I am being sacked for that?’ I didn’t do anything else.

“The headmaster said nobody else at the school uses words like that. And he said in his 40 years as a teacher he had not heard words like that.’’ Mr Bellamy said he was dumbstruck.

“I told him the teachers, the students and the boys and their parents use similar slang words every day as part of their everyday language – every day.

“Graeme (McDonald) disagreed. He said, ‘that doesn’t happen.’

“When I insisted it did he said, ‘We’ll have to disagree’.”

If everyone who used a swear word was sacked, there wouldn’t be many coaches or teachers left, Mr Bellamy said.

Mr Bellamy said he wrote Mr McDonald a letter setting out exactly what happened and apologising.

“Mr McDonald said the six-page letter only made it worse,’’ he said, because Mr McDonald did not believe the apology was sincere.

Mr Bellamy said he intended no disrespect and supported BBC’s church-based education philosophy and church schools.

“I have nothing but total respect and goodwill towards BBC and don’t wish Graeme any ill will,’’ Mr Bellamy said.

“I wanted to use humour and use their language to get across the serious nature of the talk.’’

Even if it IS a sackable offense under Bellamy's contract (I have no knowledge either way), let's urge Brisbane Boys' College to reconsider and set a better example for their students - let's show the community how to accept that a mistake has been made and correct it.

Photo:

David Bellamy says his dismissal from Brisbane Boys’ College was ‘illogical’. Picture: Mark Cranitch Source: News Corp Australia