News Release
For Immediate Release: 2.18.26
Contact: John Manning, media@firstliberty.org
Direct: 972-941-4453
Nashville First Grade Teacher Banished from Classroom After Asking Accommodation from Pro Same-Sex Marriage Book
Teacher has been reassigned and faced losing job after asking another teacher to read materials to class that violate his religious beliefs.
Nashville, TN—First Liberty Institute sent a letter to officials at the KIPP Antioch College Prep Elementary School in Nashville, TN on behalf of Eric Rivera, a former first grade teacher, demanding that the school clear his record and adopt policies that ensure teachers are accommodated after he was reassigned for refusing to read two books to first graders that promote same-sex marriage. The letter also asks the school to ensure that parents are notified when topics of sexuality are going to be discussed.
You can read the letter here.
“Requiring a teacher violate their religious beliefs in order to keep their job is blatant discrimination that violates the Civil Rights Act,” said Cliff Martin, Senior Counsel at First Liberty Institute. “Our client cares deeply about his students and simply has a religious objection to teaching certain lessons and asked for a simple religious accommodation. The school has sent the message that anyone who has a traditional view of marriage is unfit to teach first grade.”
Eric Rivera is a devout Christian who taught first-grade students at KIPP Antioch College Prep Elementary School in Nashville, Tennessee. As part of the first-grade curriculum, teachers read students a book featuring a same-sex married couple and their daughter. Eric, due to his sincere religious beliefs, could not in good conscience read this book to his students. Knowing this, Eric switched periods with a colleague on the day when the book would be read. However, after the book had already been read to the students, the principal called Eric into her office and threatened to fire him should he not forfeit his beliefs and agree to teach all books in the curriculum regardless of his convictions. He was told he must “maintain fidelity” with the school’s worldview. After this, Eric sought religious accommodation, unwilling to back down from his faith. He was then reassigned.
In the letter, the attorneys explain, “Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 established that it is unlawful for an employer to discriminate against any individual with respect to religion and also requires employers to accommodate employees’ religious practices unless doing so would impose an “undue hardship” on the conduct of the employer’s business.” The letter continues, “KIPP cannot demonstrate any undue hardship here. Therefore, KIPP failed to reasonably accommodate Mr. Rivera in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.”
The attorneys further explained that KIPP may be in violation of parental rights under the United States Constitution and Tennessee law, citing to the recent Supreme Court decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor and to Tennessee legislation requiring parental notification of “sexual orientation or gender identity curriculum.”
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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.
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