News Release
For Immediate Release: 8.22.23
Contact: John Manning, media@firstliberty.org
Direct: 972-941-4453
Ninth Circuit Urged to Protect Right of Religious Organizations to Hire People Who Share Beliefs
First Liberty Institute files friend-of-the-court brief in key religious liberty case at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
San Francisco, CA—First Liberty Institute today filed a friend-of-the-court brief at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on behalf of The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse in support of World Vision in its appeal to protect the ability of religious organizations to hire people who share the organization’s religious beliefs.
You can read the brief here.
“The Constitution and federal law protect the right of religious organizations to hire employees who agree with the organization’s religious beliefs,” said Becky Dummermuth, Counsel for First Liberty Institute. “Forcing religious organizations to hire employees who may openly disagree with their religious beliefs violates both Title VII and the constitutional doctrine of church autonomy. To deny religious organizations those protections would not only hurt them, it would also impact the multitudes of vulnerable people they serve in their country and around the world.”
In the brief, attorneys argue, “The impact these [religious] organizations have in advancing their religious missions—whether through evangelistic programs or tangible forms of serving people in need or those affected by natural disasters—is only possible because these faith-based entities hire only individuals who share their faith and are prepared to live out those religious beliefs consistent with the organization’s mission and the organization’s recognition of the conduct that flows from holding these beliefs…. A plain-text reading of Title VII’s Section 702 Exemption is consistent with the First Amendment freedoms given to religious organizations, and such a reading ensures the First Amendment rights granted to religious employers are protected.”
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About First Liberty Institute
First Liberty Institute is a non-profit public interest law firm and the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans.
To arrange an interview, contact John Manning at media@firstliberty.org or by calling 972-941-4453.
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