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New York teacher screams 'f**k the police' in Facebook live during BLM protest, Internet divided over axing him

Steven Lysenko is a ninth-grade teacher at Spencerport High School in Rochester, upstate NY

ROCHESTER, NEW YORK: A high school assistant principal is under fire after he posted a video of himself shouting "f*** the police" during recent protests in New York. Steven Lysenko, a ninth-grade teacher at Spencerport High School in Rochester, upstate NY, filmed himself at a recent Black Lives Matter protest, several of which have rocked the city in recent months. Protests erupted after police body-camera footage emerged of Daniel Prude's harsh arrest in March, a week before he died of asphyxiation, The Sun reported.

In the footage from one of the protests, Lysenko complained about law enforcement officers targeting protesters even though “we didn’t do anything but chant and sing."

“Our peacekeepers ended up shooting pepper spray at us for singing and chanting and telling them what a sh**ty-a***d job they were doing," Lysenko says, while wearing a Black Lives Matter apparel. He then screams: “They can f**k right off, America! F**k the police! F**k Rochester Police Department!" However, the viral video resulted in considerable backlash against Lysenko's school, which was forced to release a statement.

While local education officials said they did not "condone" usage of bad language by educators on social media, they stood firm for "racial equality and systemic change." In a statement posted online, the school district also addressed the backlash but said it would treat the incident as a "confidential, personnel matter". “We apologize to our students, parents, and community that you had to hear this language from one of our employees,” it read.

The district insisted it “stands in solidarity in support of racial equality and systemic change” and that “we further stand in solidarity with peaceful protesters.”

“However, when a District employee uses language in public or on social media that does not align with our Code of Conduct or demonstrate appropriate role modeling for students, that is something that we will not condone," it continued.

Nonetheless, Lysenko continued to receive intense backlash for his foul-mouthed antics on social media. "Steven Lysenko needs to be terminated, school district. Hate doesn’t belong in the classroom. #WhiteandBlackLivesDoMatter,” one Twitter user wrote in response to one of Lysenko’s tweets.

"If any student knows their teachers’ political beliefs, they shouldn’t be teaching at all," another added.

Nearly 5,000 people, however, reportedly signed a change.org petition on Sunday, September 6 demanding Lysenko keeps his job. “(Lysenko) is setting a good example to the students at Spencerport showing us to fight for what we believe in," the petition reads. “Swear words are just words and should not be a reason to be fired. We all hear swear words anyways so it is not a big deal.”

That said, Lysenko has previously advocated for the Black Lives Matter movement in his role as president of a local chapter of the National Association for Multicultural Education. “To any students-past or present-who follow me here: know that when you post #WhiteLivesMatter, you are condoning White Supremacy. In that, I will not abide!” he tweeted June 3.