ADF: Ariz. law protecting student religious expression comes at perfect time
ADF letter to Gov. Brewer debunked American Counseling Association’s claims about key component of bill
Monday, May 2, 2011
ADF attorney sound bite (5/2/2011): Jeremy Tedesco
PHOENIX — A bill signed by Ariz. Gov. Jan Brewer Friday that protects the religious expression of university students is good law that comes at a needed time, according to the Alliance Defense Fund, which frequently defends the religious expression of students in court. ADF issued a legal opinion to Brewer last week rebutting false claims by the American Counseling Association that one section of the University Student Religious Freedom Bill, H.B. 2565, would undermine the training of counselors and “harm the public.”
“Christian and other religious university students should not be punished for expressing and living according to their beliefs, and that’s all this bill aims to protect,” said ADF Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco. “ADF is involved in several lawsuits nationwide right now concerning this very sort of problem: university officials who think they can withhold a degree or mark down a student because they hold views that don’t fit with the politically correct views of administrators. Laws like Arizona’s will help stop that from happening, and ADF will gladly defend the bill free of charge if it is ever challenged in court.”
The section of the law to which the ACA objected reads, “A university or community college shall not discipline or discriminate against a student in a counseling, social work or psychology program because the student refuses to counsel a client about goals that conflict with the student’s sincerely held religious belief if the student consults with the supervising instructor or professor to determine the proper course of action to avoid harm to the client.”
The ADF letter to Brewer addressed falsehoods presented in the ACA’s own letter to the governor, including inaccurate information about the current ADF lawsuit Ward v. Wilbanks. The case involves an Eastern Michigan University student kicked out of the school’s graduate counseling program for adhering to her religious beliefs. The incident prompted Michigan legislators to consider a bill similar to Arizona’s last year.
“The ACA’s letter is part of a growing trend ADF has observed among the helping professions (social work, counseling, psychology) to exclude Christians (and persons of other religious persuasions) who are serious about their faith from their professions…,” the ADF letter to Brewer states.
“ADF has filed three cases (including the Ward case) in the last few years involving students enrolled in counseling or social work programs who were discriminated against because of their religious beliefs; we favorably settled one of these cases and are currently litigating the other two,” the ADF letter explains. “HB 2565 thus comes at an opportune time. With the helping professions and universities taking the position that religious people who take their religious faith seriously are not welcome in the profession, it is the right time for the legislature and governor to act to protect the fundamental, religious liberties of Arizona citizens.”
The new law also protects campus student organizations to ensure they aren’t forced to accept leaders or members who disagree with their mission and purpose. The Center for Arizona Policy strongly supported passage of the bill.
“Christian and other religious university students should not be punished for expressing and living according to their beliefs, and that’s all this bill aims to protect,” said ADF Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco. “ADF is involved in several lawsuits nationwide right now concerning this very sort of problem: university officials who think they can withhold a degree or mark down a student because they hold views that don’t fit with the politically correct views of administrators. Laws like Arizona’s will help stop that from happening, and ADF will gladly defend the bill free of charge if it is ever challenged in court.”
The section of the law to which the ACA objected reads, “A university or community college shall not discipline or discriminate against a student in a counseling, social work or psychology program because the student refuses to counsel a client about goals that conflict with the student’s sincerely held religious belief if the student consults with the supervising instructor or professor to determine the proper course of action to avoid harm to the client.”
The ADF letter to Brewer addressed falsehoods presented in the ACA’s own letter to the governor, including inaccurate information about the current ADF lawsuit Ward v. Wilbanks. The case involves an Eastern Michigan University student kicked out of the school’s graduate counseling program for adhering to her religious beliefs. The incident prompted Michigan legislators to consider a bill similar to Arizona’s last year.
“The ACA’s letter is part of a growing trend ADF has observed among the helping professions (social work, counseling, psychology) to exclude Christians (and persons of other religious persuasions) who are serious about their faith from their professions…,” the ADF letter to Brewer states.
“ADF has filed three cases (including the Ward case) in the last few years involving students enrolled in counseling or social work programs who were discriminated against because of their religious beliefs; we favorably settled one of these cases and are currently litigating the other two,” the ADF letter explains. “HB 2565 thus comes at an opportune time. With the helping professions and universities taking the position that religious people who take their religious faith seriously are not welcome in the profession, it is the right time for the legislature and governor to act to protect the fundamental, religious liberties of Arizona citizens.”
The new law also protects campus student organizations to ensure they aren’t forced to accept leaders or members who disagree with their mission and purpose. The Center for Arizona Policy strongly supported passage of the bill.
- ADF “Speak Up” University website
- Pronunciation guide: Tedesco (tuh-DESS’-ko)
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.