First Liberty



First Liberty and America's elite fighting force, the Navy
SEALs, have won their fight against religious discrimination.

First Liberty represented 35 U.S. Navy SEALs, other members of the
Navy Special Warfare community, and Navy Special Operators who were
threatened with punishment, involuntary separation and even
court-martial. We eventually expanded the case to include over 4,000
Navy personnel. Why? Because they sought a legal, religious
accommodation to the military vaccine mandate.

In January of 2022, we won a huge victory for these brave Navy service
members when a federal district court judge issued an injunction. This
injunction prohibited the Navy from taking any adverse action against
members of the Navy because of their sincere religious objections to
the Department of Defense vaccine mandate.

Now after more than 2 years of additional litigation, we have
officially reached a settlement that benefits all of the Navy
personnel we represented.

The settlement ensures that Navy service members who refused the COVID
vaccine for religious reasons will now have an opportunity to have
their records corrected and their careers protected. Service members
who elected to leave service after being mistreated by the Navy will
also get their records corrected.

The Navy also agreed to:

* Post a statement affirming the Navy's respect for
religious service members
* Provide more training for commanders who review religious
accommodation requests
* Revise its policy for accommodation requests that was changed
during the mandate

When the Navy implemented the Pentagon's vaccine mandate,
everything changed for our Navy SEALs clients, their families and
their careers.

They were denied assignments, prevented from receiving critical
medical care and threatened with dismissal for staying true to their
faith.

After more than two decades of military service, Gabe, one of our Navy
SEALs, shares his story of the adversity he faced when he requested a
religious accommodation to the vaccine mandate.

A Navy SEALs Story | First Liberty Institute
[link removed]

Thanks to your support, Gabe and the other Navy SEALs we represented
were never alone in their fight for faith.

You and I have fought alongside them for the past three years. Through
the victories and setbacks in their case, we've fought for the
religious freedom they so richly deserve.

This win truly puts into perspective the sacrifices service members
like these Navy SEALs make to secure our constitutionally guaranteed
freedoms.

And the reality is, if this can happen to some of our toughest
military service members...it can happen to any American.

If we are not diligent in staying on the frontlines of this fight for
religious liberty, all our freedoms could be lost.

Just as America's Navy SEALs never give up on their country when
serving, we at First Liberty will never give up on our service
members.

We can never completely repay them for defending our nation. But we
can defend them in court so that the freedoms they've fought for
are safeguarded for generations to come.

I want to ask you to stand with military members like Gabe as we
continue to protect people of faith who are serving our country.

Because they fight for our right to live out our faith, it's
time for us to fight for theirs.

Will you join First Liberty in standing with our military service
members as we keep fighting for faith and freedom?
[link removed]

Your support means so much to our military service members.

Let's keep fighting for our God-given rights. Our children and
grandchildren are depending on it.

Thankful for you, 

Kelly

Kelly Shackelford, Esq.
President, CEO & Chief Counsel
First Liberty Institute

P.S. If you are a Navy service member and want to learn more about
this settlement, please visit [link removed] .



GIVE
[link removed]

Join Us on Facebook
[link removed]

Join Us on Instagram
[link removed]

Follow Us on Twitter
[link removed]

Watch Us on YouTube
[link removed]

Join Us on LinkedIn
[link removed]

Sent by First Liberty Institute
[email protected]

2001 W. Plano Parkway, Suite 1600 * Plano, TX 75075 *
972-941-4444

View Online
[link removed]

Donate
[link removed]

Unsubscribe
[link removed]

Privacy Policy
[link removed]

Powered By Blackbaud
[link removed]

? 2024
First Liberty Institute