Public school teachers in Los Angeles, California, are no longer required to affirm the gender identity of trans-identified or nonbinary students as part of a mandatory training, according to an advocacy organization.
Pray for your fellow intercessor.
In a statement Friday, the conservative Christian legal organization Liberty Counsel announced that the Los Angeles Unified School District had agreed to amend a requirement that teachers in the second-largest school district in the United States answer in the affirmative when filling out a questionnaire declaring, “I am aware that LAUSD policy requires me to affirm and respect the identities of all students, including those who identify as LGBTQ+.”
Filling out the questionnaire is part of the district’s mandatory LGBTQ+ cultural training.
Liberty Counsel sent the school district a demand letter on June 8 on behalf of “Christian educators at LAUSD who wish to exempt themselves from LAUSD’s mandatory LGBTQ+ Cultural Training Certification” due to their “traditional religious beliefs regarding sexuality, marriage, and God’s design for humankind.” According to Liberty Counsel, “A mandatory certification that requires affirmation of views contrary to those beliefs directly conflicts with their sincerely held religious convictions.”
Liberty Counsel warned the school district that the requirement that teachers affirm LGBT students likely violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which requires employers to reasonably accommodate employees’ religious beliefs. The letter noted that teachers were required to complete the training and certification and that failure to do so by the end of the school year could affect their employment.
The law firm requested a response by June 12 confirming that “the District will accept and fairly consider requests for religious accommodation from the mandatory certification requirement based upon sincerely held religious beliefs, consistent with the requirements of Title VII” and threatened legal action if it did not receive one.
On June 10, the district changed the language in the questionnaire so that teachers only had to agree to the statement, “I am aware of LAUSD nondiscrimination policies, including those regarding students who identify as or are perceived as LGBTQ+.”
“The Los Angeles Unified School District did the right thing in changing its training certification language,” Liberty Counsel Chairman and Founder Mat Staver said in a statement.
“Federal law is clear that teachers cannot be required to ‘affirm’ a student’s perceived gender identity or use inconsistent pronouns against their personal religious convictions,” he added. “Title VII ensures that people cannot be forced to choose between their faith and their livelihood.”
A sixth-grade teacher in the district said in a statement shared by Liberty Counsel that she feared losing her job after the district implemented the mandatory training.
“I feared losing my job, yet I knew I had to stand firm in my faith and conviction,” the unnamed teacher said. “What a victory for religious liberty! Thank you, Liberty Counsel, for courageously defending the rights of believers and helping ensure that people of faith can remain true to their convictions in the workplace.”
Another sixth-grade teacher thanked Liberty Counsel for “advocating for me as a Christian Educator not to have to agree with the LGBTQ lifestyle.”
“Their support brought peace, strength, and protection for our religious convictions, ensuring public schools respect Christian employees,” an 11th-grade teacher said.
Even after the language was amended, the questionnaire still requires teachers to agree that “inclusive education means creating a learning environment where all students, regardless of identity or background, feel respected and supported” and to acknowledge understanding of “LAUSD policies and procedures regarding how to address behavior that may constitute discrimination against a student, including a student who identifies as or is perceived as LGBTQ+.”
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This article was originally published at The Christian Post. Photo Credit: Monkey Business Images/Canva.
