First Liberty



In 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling in our Coach
Kennedy case made it clear that teachers are free to engage in
personal expressions of their faith without threat of being fired.

But nearly three years later, some school districts are still trying
to punish teachers for expressing their faith.

Such is the case for Marisol Arroyo-Castro.

After three decades of dedicated service as a teacher, Marisol is
being threatened with termination for having a small crucifix near her
desk.

For the past 10 years, Marisol has displayed her crucifix in her
personal space. As a devout Catholic, the crucifix reminds her to pray
and provides comfort throughout the day as she faithfully teaches her
students.

Other teachers similarly display personal expressive items that are
important to them: photos of family and pets, sports team pennants,
and inspirational quotes.

In December 2024, the school's vice principal told her in a
meeting to remove the crucifix or be disciplined for insubordination.
She was later told she could put the crucifix in a drawer or under her
desk, so students wouldn't see it.

When she couldn't comply, Marisol was suspended without pay for
two days, then placed on administrative leave and recently demoted to
a non-teaching position, all while facing the threat of termination.

No teacher should be forced to purge their workspace of anything
religious.

This type of blatant religious discrimination is not only
wrong...it's a clear violation of the First Amendment.

At First Liberty, we won't standby when teachers like Marisol
come under attack for their faith. Instead, we're taking legal
action against officials at the New Britain School District in
Connecticut.

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We've asked the federal court as well as the EEOC to stop the
district's unconstitutional behavior.

Marisol has the constitutional right to display her crucifix in her
personal workspace.

It doesn't matter if the principal doesn't like it. It
doesn't matter if the superintendent doesn't like it. It
doesn't even matter if the governor of Connecticut doesn't
like it.

Bottom line - Marisol is allowed display it.

That's why we won't stop fighting for Marisol until the
New Britain School District:

* stops its mistreatment of Marisol
* stops discriminating against religious employees
* allows all of its teachers and staff to engage in personal
expressions of faith

Will you fight for Marisol and stand with First Liberty against
religious discrimination?
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We can't allow these threats against Marisol to go unanswered.

Your best gift today will give our expert attorneys the resources they
need to fight back against this out-of-control school district.

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First Liberty Institute