A college professor was reportedlyfired for writingthe Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting did not happen.
Noah Pozner was 6 years old when he was fatally shot along with 25others in Newtown, Connecticut on December 14, 2012.
His parents, Lenny and Veronique Pozner, wrote an opinion piece in the Sun Sentinel last month discussing “conspiracy theorists that deny [their] tragedy was real.”
The Pozners wrote,
To our horror, we have found that there are some in this society who lack empathy for the suffering of others… They seek us out and accuse us of being government agents who are faking our grief and lying about our loss.
They went on to mention James Tracy, who taughtcourses at Florida Atlantic University about how different types of media report social andpolitical issues, according to The Washington Post.
On the Sandy Hook HoaxFacebook page, Tracy reportedly wrote the shooting was staged in order to introduce laws to tighten gun control.
He claimed it was an “elaborate hoax,” noone actually died and the parents of victims were really “local coconspirators” trying to make money.
In the Sun Sentinel piece, the Pozners saidTracy sent them a letter requesting proof of their son’s existence.
They wrote,
We found this so outrageous and unsettling that we filed a police report for harassment. Once Tracy realized we would not respond, he subjected us to ridicule and contempt on his blog, boasting to his readers that the unfulfilled request was noteworthy because we had used copyright claims to thwart continued research of the Sandy Hook massacre event.
The Pozners then called for Florida Atlantic University to fire Tracy, who apparentlypreviously suggested other recent mass shootings were staged as well.
On Tuesday, the university releaseda statement. It read,
Florida Atlantic University today issued James Tracy with a Notice of Termination. This follows the Notice of Proposed Discipline issued to James Tracy Dec. 16. The effective date of the termination is Jan. 8, 2016. James Tracy was scheduled to teach three classes during the upcoming Spring semester. Alternative instructors will be assigned to teach those classes.
In a letter to Tracy, university officials wrote the termination is also due to his failure to submit necessary documents regarding “outside employment or professional activity” for the past fewyears as was requested.
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