Newest Religious Right Tactic: Sue to Get Civil Servant Dough and Block Gay Rights
cyncooper printable version print page     Bookmark and Share
Sun Dec 03, 2006 at 01:44:08 PM EST
A lawsuit filed in Michigan is the latest legal tactic of the Religious Right to pick the public pocket, while picking and choosing which public laws it will deign to follow. Conservative religious groups want access to government employee donation pools while reserving the right to discriminate against gays and lesbians.

This is the third case of its type filed this year by Religious Right legal organizations, Alliance Defense Fund and Christian Legal Society. In late September, a federal district court in Wisconsin issued a decision supporting the Religious Right position. Florida settled with them. While going virtually unnoticed, this new legal tactic is gaining steam and may be setting up a case for the Supreme Court.  

The three cases have been filed in Wisconsin, Florida and Michigan. All have been brought by The Alliance Defense Fund and the Christian Legal Society, (motto "Seeking Justice with the Love of God -- Luke 11:42.")

The latest, filed on November 3, 2006, is the Michigan case, which claims that the Christian Legal Society and others should be allowed to participate in charity pools of state government employees - United Way type programs.  But, the lawsuit demands, religious groups should not be forced to sign statements of nondiscrimination, as other participants do.

The decision five weeks earlier in Wisconsin was touted by the Christian Legal Society:"Victory for Wisconsin faith-based organizations." The federal district court ruled on September 29, 2006 that the Christian Legal Society and other religious organizations can discriminate and still participate in Wisconsin State Employees Combined Campaign, giving Religious Right organizations access to some of the $2.8 million in government employee donations.

The lawsuits all come from the same source. Designated as the plaintiff is the innocuous-sounding "Association of Faith-Based Organizations" or AFBO.  This wafer-thin "association" is located at the same Springfield, Virginia address as the Christian Legal Society, and with the same phone number.

Significantly, one of the three "leaders' listed on the website is Gregory S. Baylor, Director of Christian Legal Society's litigating arm, the Center for Law and Religious Freedom.  The other two are Thomas C. Berg, Co-Director of the Terrence J. Murphy Institute for Catholic Thought, Law and Public Policy in Minneapolis, and Carl H. Esbeck, legal counsel to the National Association of Evangelicals, active in the Federalist Society and former director of the Justice Department's Task Force on faith-based initiatives.

In other words, these people have in-depth knowledge of the law on faith-based funding and are picking their targets. The cases are custom-designed to place religious ideology as superior to gay rights. The lawsuits are a deliberate effort to push theocractic measures forward.

Records of the Virginia State Corporation Commission indicate that the Association of Faith-Based Organization first organized on March 27, 2006, only days before becoming a plaintiff in its first lawsuit to gouge employee contribution programs. The trio of "leaders" seem to believe that the AFBO name has the right ring for a string of lawsuits and a possible trip to the U.S. Supreme Court to reshape the law.

According to documents in the Wisconsin case, the AFBO claims as members (surprise!) the Christian Legal Society. Other than that, its Wisconsin list is puny: the Pro-Life Wisconsin Educational Task Force, Teen Challenge International-Wisconin, Advocates International and Mission Aviation Fellowship.

The case was a set-up from the get-go. In 2005, the Christian Legal Society applied to be in the pool eligible for state employee funds, but deliberately refused to check off that it complied with non-discrimination requirements.

In Michigan, CLS applied at the same time under the name of "Neighbor to Nation," which it describes as its "umbrella" group.   Neighbor to Nation (originally Share America!) is incorporated in Virginia at the same Christian Legal Society address.

In applying for the donation pool in Michigan, CLS's Gregory Baylor attached a letter saying Neighbor to Nation would not sign the non-discrimination clause because it is a religious entity "organized around a shared commitment to Jesus Christ." Carefully avoiding any anti-gay references, the letter said board members and employees must sign a statement of faith and the group reserves the right to take religious beliefs into account in deciding whom to represent.


"Moreover, a person's participation in extramarital sexual conduct might disqualify them for membership in, employment with, or the receipt of certain services from CLS.

It is CLS's view that the policies and practices described ... do not constitute "discrimination," which is properly defined as the invidious reliance upon irrelevant characteristics.  Nonetheless, we acknowledge that our understanding of the term "discrimination" is not universally held.  Indeed, it has been our experience that many contend that CLS's policies and practices constitute "discrimination" on the basis of religion and marital status.

CLS has a fundamental right, protected by the U.S. Constitution, to hold and practice the policies described in this letter.  Michigan may not, consistent with the law, deny CLS participation in the campaign based upon its policies and practices, which are solidly rooted in orthodox, historic Christianity."

Behind this piety is one simple word: homophobia. The Wisconsin case was a pre-emptive strike, since the state did not require a statement of anti-gay discrimination.

But religious groups latched onto a 2002 letter by the state head of administration, describing groups that might be affected if an anti-gay discrimination policy were adopted (e.g. Catholics United for Life, Prison Fellowship Ministries, Boy Scouts).

Religious groups, such as the Christian Military Fellowship and others, are currently among the 400 charities in the Wisconsin program.

So why the fuss to bring a test case? The answer is probably in Connecticut. A case from there (cited below) ruled the other way, placing gay protection from discrimination as a higher value. The Religious Right lawyers may be aiming to undermine it as precedent and also to get the Supreme Court to reverse it by securing conflicting decisions from elsewhere.

Wisconsin helps them. The decision (Association of Faith-Based Organizations v. Bablitch), authored by the controversial and mercurial Judge John Shabaz, said:

Plaintiff’s members have a constitutional right to expressive association which entitles them to limit membership in their organizations to those who share common religious views ….

Plaintiff’s members also have a constitutional free speech right to solicit funds from state employees.

The judge concluded that Wisconsin “unequivocally supports the right of religious organizations to control their internal governance” by permitting religious employers to discriminate in hiring and letting the department of family services to fund religious organizations without challenging their internal governance.

Kicking out religious discriminators in the donations program would be “a stark single exception,” said the judge.

In the Connecticut case, Boy Scouts of America v. Wyman [335 F.3d 80 (2d Cir.2003)] the Second Circuit Court of Appeals said in 2003 that the state did not have to include the Boy Scouts in a state donations program. Connecticut law expressly prohibited state agencies from providing support to organizations that discriminated based on sexual orientation, and the Wisconsin court found this to be the central difference to reaching its opposite conclusion.

Another case brought by the AFBO in Florida was settled with a proposed change of rules for inclusion in the Florida State Employees Charitable Campaign. The change has yet to be effectuated.

CLS and ADF (which has as founders James Dobson of Focus on Family, Donald Wildmon of the American Family Association, and James Kennedy of Coral Ridge Ministries) are not only aiming to open up new pools of Religious Right funding, but to put new obstacles before gay and lesbian rights.

National legal organizations that care about gay rights need to sit up and take notice. These three copycat lawsuits indicate that CLS and ADF are intent on marching forward: no doubt, more lawsuits are on the way.




Display:
The case from Connecticut on charitable giving argues loudly for state level laws prohibiting discrimination against gays and lesbians.  Because Connecticut had a law, the state didn't have to open up special benefits, such as participation in a fundraising program, to groups that discriminate --  even those that use religion as a justification.

by cyncooper on Sat Dec 02, 2006 at 08:38:31 PM EST

Know what hooked me? Your report that all these fascist organizations have the same address.

by Josh Thomas on Mon Dec 18, 2006 at 01:31:33 AM EST


WWW Talk To Action


Cognitive Dissonance & Dominionism Denial
There is new research on why people are averse to hearing or learning about the views of ideological opponents. Based on evaluation of five......
By Frederick Clarkson (374 comments)
Will the Air Force Do Anything To Rein In Its Dynamic Duo of Gay-Bashing, Misogynistic Bloggers?
"I always get nervous when I see female pastors/chaplains. Here is why everyone should as well: "First, women are not called to be pastors,......
By Chris Rodda (199 comments)
The Legacy of Big Oil
The media is ablaze with the upcoming publication of David Grann's book, Killers of the Flower Moon. The shocking non fiction account of the......
By wilkyjr (111 comments)
Gimme That Old Time Dominionism Denial
Over the years, I have written a great deal here and in other venues about the explicitly theocratic movement called dominionism -- which has......
By Frederick Clarkson (101 comments)
History Advisor to Members of Congress Completely Twists Jefferson's Words to Support Muslim Ban
Pseudo-historian David Barton, best known for his misquoting of our country's founders to promote the notion that America was founded as a Christian nation,......
By Chris Rodda (113 comments)
"Christian Fighter Pilot" Calls First Lesbian Air Force Academy Commandant a Liar
In a new post on his "Christian Fighter Pilot" blog titled "BGen Kristin Goodwin and the USAFA Honor Code," Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan......
By Chris Rodda (144 comments)
Catholic Right Leader Unapologetic about Call for 'Death to Liberal Professors' -- UPDATED
Today, Donald Trump appointed C-FAM Executive Vice President Lisa Correnti to the US Delegation To UN Commission On Status Of Women. (C-FAM is a......
By Frederick Clarkson (126 comments)
Controlling Information
     Yesterday I listened to Russ Limbaugh.  Rush advised listeners it would be best that they not listen to CNN,MSNBC, ABC, CBS and......
By wilkyjr (118 comments)
Is Bannon Fifth-Columning the Pope?
In December 2016 I wrote about how White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, who likes to flash his Catholic credentials when it comes to......
By Frank Cocozzelli (251 comments)
Ross Douthat's Hackery on the Seemingly Incongruous Alliance of Bannon & Burke
Conservative Catholic writer Ross Douthat has dissembled again. This time, in a February 15, 2017 New York Times op-ed titled The Trump Era's Catholic......
By Frank Cocozzelli (64 comments)
`So-Called Patriots' Attack The Rule Of Law
Every so often, right-wing commentator Pat Buchanan lurches out of the far-right fever swamp where he has resided for the past 50 years to......
By Rob Boston (161 comments)
Bad Faith from Focus on the Family
Here is one from the archives, Feb 12, 2011, that serves as a reminder of how deeply disingenuous people can be. Appeals to seek......
By Frederick Clarkson (177 comments)
The Legacy of George Wallace
"One need not accept any of those views to agree that they had appealed to real concerns of real people, not to mindless, unreasoning......
By wilkyjr (70 comments)
Betsy DeVos's Mudsill View of Public Education
My Talk to Action colleague Rachel Tabachnick has been doing yeoman's work in explaining Betsy DeVos's long-term strategy for decimating universal public education. If......
By Frank Cocozzelli (80 comments)
Prince and DeVos Families at Intersection of Radical Free Market Privatizers and Religious Right
This post from 2011 surfaces important information about President-Elect Trump's nominee for Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos. -- FC Erik Prince, Brother of Betsy......
By Rachel Tabachnick (218 comments)

Respect for Others? or Political Correctness?
The term "political correctness" as used by Conservatives and Republicans has often puzzled me: what exactly do they mean by it? After reading Chip Berlin's piece here-- http://www.talk2action.org/story/2016/7/21/04356/9417 I thought about what he explained......
MTOLincoln (253 comments)
Fear
What I'm feeling now is fear.  I swear that it seems my nightmares are coming true with this new "president".  I'm also frustrated because so many people are not connecting all the dots! I've......
ArchaeoBob (107 comments)
"America - love it or LEAVE!"
I've been hearing that and similar sentiments fairly frequently in the last few days - far FAR more often than ever before.  Hearing about "consequences for burning the flag (actions) from Trump is chilling!......
ArchaeoBob (211 comments)
"Faked!" Meme
Keep your eyes and ears open for a possible move to try to discredit the people openly opposing Trump and the bigots, especially people who have experienced terrorism from the "Right"  (Christian Terrorism is......
ArchaeoBob (165 comments)
More aggressive proselytizing
My wife told me today of an experience she had this last week, where she was proselytized by a McDonald's employee while in the store. ......
ArchaeoBob (163 comments)
See if you recognize names on this list
This comes from the local newspaper, which was conservative before and took a hard right turn after it was sold. Hint: Sarah Palin's name is on it!  (It's also connected to Trump.) ......
ArchaeoBob (169 comments)
Unions: A Labor Day Discussion
This is a revision of an article which I posted on my personal board and also on Dailykos. I had an interesting discussion on a discussion board concerning Unions. I tried to piece it......
Xulon (180 comments)
Extremely obnoxious protesters at WitchsFest NYC: connected to NAR?
In July of this year, some extremely loud, obnoxious Christian-identified protesters showed up at WitchsFest, an annual Pagan street fair here in NYC.  Here's an account of the protest by Pagan writer Heather Greene......
Diane Vera (130 comments)
Capitalism and the Attack on the Imago Dei
I joined this site today, having been linked here by Crooksandliars' Blog Roundup. I thought I'd put up something I put up previously on my Wordpress blog and also at the DailyKos. As will......
Xulon (331 comments)
History of attitudes towards poverty and the churches.
Jesus is said to have stated that "The Poor will always be with you" and some Christians have used that to refuse to try to help the poor, because "they will always be with......
ArchaeoBob (148 comments)
Alternate economy medical treatment
Dogemperor wrote several times about the alternate economy structure that dominionists have built.  Well, it's actually made the news.  Pretty good article, although it doesn't get into how bad people could be (have been)......
ArchaeoBob (90 comments)
Evidence violence is more common than believed
Think I've been making things up about experiencing Christian Terrorism or exaggerating, or that it was an isolated incident?  I suggest you read this article (linked below in body), which is about our great......
ArchaeoBob (214 comments)

More Diaries...




All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective companies. Comments, posts, stories, and all other content are owned by the authors. Everything else © 2005 Talk to Action, LLC.