College student and street preacher Kombe Sefelino was suspended from the County College of Morris (CCM) in Randolph, New Jersey, for quoting the Bible and condemning homosexuality as a sin.
But after he filed a federal lawsuit in March citing his First Amendment right to free speech, he is now allowed back on campus. The college sent his attorney a letter on March 31 saying it would let Sefelino on campus and allow him to exercise all his First Amendment rights.
“The college, I think, knows what they did was wrong,” attorney Wally Zimolong told The Epoch Times. “But they haven’t said they wouldn’t do it again. They haven’t said he’s completely in the clear. They haven’t done anything to repair the damage to his academic record. They haven’t rescinded his previous suspensions.”
In November, someone complained to the college administration about Sefelino’s statements that homosexuals “will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
While preaching outside in the center of the campus, Sefelino preached directly from 1 Corinthians 6:9–11, which states that “the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God” and lists “the sexually immoral” and “men who practice homosexuality” as being unrighteous, along with thieves, drunkards, adulterers, and others who commit various sins.
The complaint prompted a Nov. 11 warning letter from the college describing Sefelino as using hate speech that demonstrated bias against the LGBT community. The letter threatened Sefelino with expulsion if the college received any more complaints about his “biased behavior.”
“We accept everyone here. There is no place for bias at CCM. You should think hard about whether this is the best environment for you,” said Vivyen Ray, CCM’s vice president of human resources and labor relations, in the closing of the letter.
Zimolong disagreed with Ray’s statement about acceptance.
Undeterred by Administration’s Threats
Sefelino continued preaching for passersby to repent of their sins and put their faith in Jesus.On Nov. 28, 2022, the college suspended Sefelino, saying he was guilty of preaching hate speech on campus in reference to homosexuality. The suspension ran from Nov. 28 to Dec. 8, 2022.
Zimolong said CCM previously told him—after the suspension but before the latest letter—that it would have Sefelino arrested for trespassing if he appeared on campus.
CCM told The Epoch Times it cannot comment on pending litigation.
“The college suspended Mr. Sefelino because of the content of his speech and the viewpoints that he expressed. This is constitutionally impermissible at a public institution of higher learning,” court papers filed in U.S. District Court of New Jersey Newark say. “There is no ‘hate speech’ exception to the First Amendment. And even if there were, repeating words from the Bible that homosexuals ‘will not inherit the kingdom of God,’ is not hate speech.
