Friend,

Today, AU argued in a federal appeals court on behalf of Gregg Tucker, who was fired for trying to address pervasive racism at the private religious school where he taught.

Please read on to learn more about this case, and support AU’s legal work here to ensure that religious freedom is never misused as a license to discriminate.

The racism that Gregg, a teacher and Director of Student Life at Faith Christian Academy in Colorado, and many students experienced was repugnant. White students dressed in Ku Klux Klan hoods, staged mock executions of students of color, posted racist, white supremacist commentary on social media, and hurled the n-word and racial slurs at the school’s Black, Hispanic and Asian students – and at Gregg and his family, which includes his adopted daughter, Daniela, who is Black.

Gregg tried to stop it. He organized a symposium for students to address racism, and his event was supported by the administration. It was overwhelmingly well received… except by a handful of parents whose children were the worst offenders of racist behavior.

These angry parents demanded that Gregg be fired.

What did the school do? Cave. They demoted Gregg and relieved him of some of his job duties. Then they fired him.

But Gregg didn’t give up: He sued the school for violating his civil rights. Their response was to exploit the “ministerial exception” and try to misuse religious freedom to avoid responsibility for unjustly firing him.

So today, AU attorney Bradley Girard went before a panel of federal judges to protect Gregg’s civil rights and fight this dangerous attempt to create a free pass for religious employers to discriminate against employees.

You can learn more about this case, Gregory Tucker v. Faith Bible Chapel International, on our website.

Bringing justice to Gregg and his family is crucial. But as Bradley has said, this case is bigger even than that; it “illustrates a frightening trend: Religious employers are urging courts to adopt an ever-broader interpretation of the ministerial exception. They want it applied not just to clergy and some private school educators with significant religious duties, but to all employees at religious organizations.”

AU is going to court to ensure that religious employers can’t have a free pass to sidestep civil-rights laws.

Click here to help us reach that goal. Donate $50 toward our legal work and join in our crucial efforts to protect religious freedom and fight discrimination.

The injustice at the heart of this case, and the pervasive racism that Gregg was fired for trying to stop, is enough to make any of us angry. But it’s also a sharp reminder of why our work and your commitment to religious freedom are so important.

Thank you for being with us, and for all you do to support our mission. We’ll keep you updated on the progress of this case as it develops.

In solidarity,

Rachel K. Laser
President and CEO