A school board in Virginia has urged the state's association of schools to stop holding events at Liberty University following President Jerry Falwell Jr.'s remarks last December about killing Muslims with guns.
In a letter, the Fairfax County School Board urged the Virginia High School League (VHSL) "that future events sponsored by the Virginia High School League (VHSL) no longer be held at Liberty University," Christian News reports.
They said they are "deeply disturbed" by the comments made by Falwell last Dec. 4 when he told 10,000 assembled students to get handguns, saying "we could end those Muslims before they walked in...let's teach them a lesson if they ever show up here."
The school board said Muslim-Americans comprise a large segment of their community and Falwell's remarks "stand in contrast to our goal in Fairfax County to create welcoming, inclusive environments and to ensure that all of our students have access to the same opportunities."
They said they support the students who boycotted the State Debate Championship held last April 22 to 23 because of Falwell's comments.
"At the same time, we find it unfair that our students were put in the position of forsaking their participation in a state championship because of the unwelcoming environment at the host institution," the letter said.
Falwell told students then that "I've always thought that if more good people had concealed-carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they walked in and killed them," according to the Washington Post.
He encouraged everyone to get their gun permit as the university offers a free course, saying "Let's teach them a lesson if they ever show up here."
As a result, the VHSL decided to move a number of state championship games from Liberty University.
The league voted 27-0 to move 14 state championship games from the institution.
"When we talked about it at the last executive committee meeting (in February), those comments were not discussed. The discussion was more about cost and travel time," said Robert E. Lee Principal Mark Rowicki, a member of the executive committee, according to the News Leader.
He said it came down to costs.
"The changes also come down to the cost of using the facility. If one charges you $25,000 to use it, but another charges $15,000, most would vote for the less-expensive option," he said.
