ENDA: Squashing Religious Rights

It took eight years to resolve, but a faith-based case involving the Kentucky Baptist Home for Children was finally decided last week in federal court. The suit began when the Home, since renamed Sunrise Children's Services, fired employee Alicia Pedreira for openly living a lesbian lifestyle. Pedreira, who had worked for less than a year at the Home, sued the organization for religious discrimination.

In 2001, the court ruled that Sunrise was justified in terminating Pedreira because her behavior violated the group's Christian values. Pedreira launched another suit, this time with the help of the ACLU and Americans United for the Separation of Church and State. She alleged that Sunrise was using government funds to promote religion. For seven more years the case dragged on, tying up countless donor dollars and the valuable time of an already overwhelmed federal court system. In the end, Judge Charles Simpson dismissed the suit on the grounds that "taxpayers do not have the standing to sue over executive branch funding of faith-based agencies," a precedent that was established last year in the U.S. Supreme Court.

Of course, if Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) gets his way, Pedreira won't need to sue, because the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) would mandate that employers accept gays and lesbians into the workplace regardless of the organization's moral beliefs. ENDA, which already passed in the House, would have a chilling effect on groups like Sunrise because the current version doesn't afford social service groups the same conscience exemptions that protect churches and the military. Instead it would force-feed "workplace equality" to employers who would have no recourse but to hire individuals whose personal conduct violates the company's mission.

FRC has learned that Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is working on a timetable to bring ENDA to the floor. Before he does, we encourage you to contact your Senators and let them know that political correctness should never trump employers' religious rights.

(Family Research Council.)