Time To Slay The Behemoth: A Soldier Needs Your Help

C.J. Grisham, center with Hugh Hewitt and Major Chuck Ziegenfuss at the Blog World Expo in October.
For the past year, I've been following a milblog called A Soldier's Perspective. Written in the first person by C.J. Grisham, it chronicled his experience and opinions as a soldier in the U.S. Army. He was always careful to make sure the reader knew this was his POV, not the Army's. His writing style is one of the best, and so he was always interesting to follow. This autumn, I had the pleasure of finally meeting him at Blog World Expo.

Recently, in a matter unrelated to his service, C.J. was the victim of harassment by the Huntsville Alabama School District and the P.T.A. The issue that sparked what would turn into a witch hunt was a meeting where supposedly, school uniforms were going to be discussed. The school wanted to require them. Like many parents, C.J. and his wife Emily were concerned that the costs were going to be prohibitive for many families, and also that these costs were going to produce a dubious gain.

So C.J. read lots of dry academic studies on uniform vs. non-uniform and found that there was virtually no gain to be had. The real difference in performance depended greatly on familial or a caring adult presence. He went to the meeting to discuss his findings and was soundly rebuked by the PTA president and the principal, who chose not to follow Robert's Rules of Parliamentary Procedure and skip the public debate. They pushed a costly measure through without any public discussion. After all, they already had the vendors at the ready with coupons!

Obviously, this enraged many. But C.J. was upset since he had evidence that would not be shared. A verbal disagreement ensued. This set off a chain of events* that culminated in
nothing less than a witch hunt. Someone either at the school, the PTA or both, decided to call his employer calling him threatening and disrespectful. They went onto his blog and Facebook, found out he had PTSD, and pinned an ugly stereotype on C.J. likening him to an unstable mad man. In a phone call:

"The principal even used my PTSD to try and bolster her claims that I was a dangerous menace to her and her goals."

Needless to say, the Army launched an investigation, and put several whammy marks on C.J.'s otherwise pristine record. Though they didn't say it directly, he also saw fit to shut down his blog.

Had C.J. worked for any other entity: a law, accounting or engineering firm, they probably wouldn't have bothered the CEO of the company. Had he worked for a small business, they wouldn't even have blinked. But someone in that mass of hysteria knew they could mess with his career by calling the U.S. Army. They called not once, but several times. And the Army, rather than separating personal life from professional life, didn't tell the noisome individual to naff off (as they deserved). The harassment didn't end there: the Grisham children were roundly harassed by the teachers and staff. The upshot is that the Grishams were so unsettled by the events, they moved their kids to Emily's parents in Montana until C.J. could get transferred out of there. This temporary move to secure their kids has cost the family dearly.

What this means is that every parent who finds themselves in disagreement with the powers that be risks having their careers ended by "officials" making false allegations to their boss. Their overstepping of boundaries was malicious. It's unfortunate that neither the school district superintendent nor the Alabama State PTA didn't have the cajones to address the misbehavior of those who perpetrated the acts of harassment themselves.

There are times when the actions of a behemoth are so unjust it deserves a lawsuit. This is one of them. C.J. and his wife Emily are hiring a lawyer

"to clear my name, force the school system to admit they overstepped their bounds by denying my right to participate in my children’s education and attempt to ruin my career."

Presumably, we hope that such a suit will also ensure that this never happens to another family again. They need to raise $7,000 by December 15 for a legal retainer fee. I hope you will give --$5, $10, $20 or more to help send a message that this kind of officially sanctioned harassment is unacceptable.

On his blog, there is a Paypal link that can used to send money instantly through a debit or credit card. All money sent through that link will go into this fund. You can also mail checks or money orders to:

Grisham Legal Fund
c/o Redstone Federal Credit Union
220 Wynn Drive
Huntsville, AL 35893

Please write “Grisham Legal Fund” in the memo line if you use this option.

*Read more of the details at Blackfive.