American Apparel CEO Under Fire Once Again; Professor Arrested While Protesting Bear Hunting

American Apparel CEO Allegedly Goes Rogue...Again.   A former American Apparel store manager, Michael Bumblis, sued the clothing company's Chief Executive Officer Dov Charney for allegedly choking him, throwing dirt at him, and hurling him nasty slurs and epithets including"fag" and a "wanna be Jew." Blambis also said he was unlawfully terminated or filing a complaint citing Charney's behavior. American Apparel, known for their retro fit USA-manufactured clothes and pro-LGBT stances, denied the allegations, calling them "contrived and untrue." Since the brand's founding in 1989, the company's controversial CEO has amassed a number of lawsuits, including accusations of sexual assault and harassment, and malicious behavior. Former-employees said that Charney would often come to work in only underwear, demanding oral sex from some staff. More of Charney's lewd comments and excerpts from Bumblis's complaint are available at the following link. [HuffPo]

Professor Arrested During Bear Hunt Protest. State troopers arrested professor Bill Crain of the City College of New York for protesting the beginning of New Jersey's bear hunting season, in what was his third bear-protest-related arrest, last week. Crain wore a sign that read "Mother Nature is crying" while walking down the road outside the Whittingham, New Jersey bear check station at the time of his arrest. New Jersey, which is home to nearly 3,000 black bears, issues thousands of bear hunting permits and harvests several hundred bears each hunting season. Crain expressed his opposition to the hunt while being detained for obstruction of the administration of law. "We need to show more compassion to animals," he said.  [NJ.com]

Bar Exam Proposed To Raise Teaching Standards. The American Federation of Teachers, a powerful teachers union, proposed a nationwide, standardized test that it hopes would raise teaching standards--the test, however, is for teachers, not students. The standardized test, comparable to the bar exam, would address unpreparedness among young public-school teachers. "It's not fair to students, and it's not fair to teachers if they are not prepared on Day One," union President Randi Weingarten said. To complete the written exam, teachers would need a minimum GPA and one year of successful student teaching experience. The proposal must be reviewed by the union task force's board of directors before recommending the concept to states. [Associated Press]

Gay-Conversion Therapy Ban Threatens First Amendment? US District Judge William Shrubb blocked California from enforcing a legislature-approved ban on therapies that intend to "turn" gay minors straight, claiming that the ban restricts the First Amendment rights of therapists who condone homosexuality. The law "bans a mental health provider from expressing his or her viewpoints about homosexuality as part of...treatment," he said. Shrubb also questioned evidence that gay-conversion therapy puts patients at risk of suicide, saying the research on the issue is "based on questionable and scientifically incomplete studies..." Shrubb signed a temporary injunction prohibiting the therapy ban. [LA Times]

Jennifer Hicks is a Communications Intern for Campus Progress.

Related Stories

• Campus Informer: Sexual Assault Edition
• How College Students Are Responding To Boston Bombing; Another Campus Victimized By Gun Violence
• Kerry: Foreign Students Shun U.S. Because Of Gun Violence; Legislature Halts Gender-Neutral Housing
• Lawmaker Says ‘It’s Not Our Job To See That Anyone Gets An Education’; Hate Speech Hits Campus
• Students Protest Ahead Of Tyga Performance; Liberty University Allows Concealed Carry In Classrooms