First Liberty




We just filed a charge of discrimination at the U.S. Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on behalf of our client Dr. Johnson
Varkey.

Dr. Varkey was fired from his job as a professor at St. Philip's
College in San Antonio, Texas because he taught that sex is determined
by X and Y chromosomes, consistent with his study of human biology and
religious beliefs.

As an adjunct professor, Dr. Varkey taught Human Anatomy and
Physiology to more than 1,500 students since 2004. He consistently
received exemplary performance reviews and was never subject to
discipline. Throughout that time, he never discussed with any student
his personal views-religious or otherwise-on human gender
or sexuality.

Last fall, four students walked out of his class because he taught
widely-accepted biological facts. He was fired in January 2023 after
the college said it "received numerous complaints" about
his "offensive" and "unacceptable religious
preaching" in the classroom. In nearly two decades of teaching
basic, unremarkable concepts, no other students ever complained.

"No college professor should be fired for teaching factual
concepts that a handful of students don't want to hear,"
said First Liberty Counsel Keisha Russell. "Dr. Varkey received
exemplary performance reviews for nearly two decades, teaching
fact-based, widely accepted science. But now that cultural elites are
at odds with these ideas, the school no longer supports professors who
teach them."

We make it clear that the college violated federal law. In the EEOC
charge, Dr. Varkey states, "St. Philip's College engaged
in disparate treatment that violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
when it terminated me because of my sincerely held religious beliefs
and protected speech. The only reason the College gave for firing me
was the student complaints of 'religious
preaching.'"

Dr. Varkey is the latest example of an everyday American who lost his
job to a toxic cancel culture that is infecting employers all over the
country. He joins a long list of First Liberty clients-including
Valerie Kloosterman, Lacey Smith, Robyn Strader and Fire Chief Ron
Hittle-who lost their jobs.

Americans should not be forced to choose between their faith and their
livelihood. Will you consider supporting First Liberty to help defend
Dr. Varkey and others facing career-ending threats?



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First Liberty Institute