Three ballplayers who wrote Bible verse references on Pride Night hats received warnings.
Justice Department Civil Rights Division Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Chair Andrea Lucas responded to Major League Baseball (MLB) warning three Christian players for writing scripture references next to the rainbow logo on their team’s Pride Night caps. The organization claimed the warning “had absolutely nothing to do with the content of the message,” though it has allowed other ideological messages under different circumstances.
AAG Dhillon sent a letter to the organization, stating, “The three players expressed their opposition to MLB’s pro-Pride orthodoxy. The Civil Rights Act prohibits MLB and its franchises from unreasonably burdening the rights of players with religious objections to serving as the League’s vehicle for pro-Pride messages.”
The letter continued, “Federal law is clear: employers must modify their uniform requirements to reasonably accommodate their employees’ exercise of religion. … This double standard – under which players may not inscribe Bible verses on hats for one game only but may wear ‘Black Lives Matter’ patches for one game only – calls MLB’s true motives into question and raises serious concerns about MLB’s compliance with Title VII.”
EEOC Chair Lucas stated, “Religious employees’ rights don’t stop when they put on their uniform, clock in for their shift, or otherwise start their workday. Employers MUST accommodate religious expression at work unless it poses a ‘substantial’ undue hardship.”
Chair Lucas urged employees who have been denied a religious accommodation, penalized, or discriminated against for religious expression at work to contact her commission.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For Assistant Attorney General Dhillon as she works to uphold civil rights and religious freedoms.
- For Chair Lucas as she seeks to ensure employers provide reasonable accommodations for expressions of faith.
Sources: USA Today, Fox News, MSN
