The 3 - July 31, 2022

This week's edition of The 3, featuring three stories of relevance to the Christian community, includes a development regarding the mandated COVID vaccine for members of the military.  Also, almost two dozen state attorneys general have sued a federal government agency for implementing a policy that ties funding for school lunches to LGBTQ ideology.  And, a flight attendant who criticized pro-abortion views of her union on her personal social media and was fired has received a major financial award from a jury.

Air Force members protected from dismissal for objections to COVID vaccine

The effect of the COVID vaccine mandate on those in our Armed Forces has been devastating, while the services continue to give relatively few exemptions to service members on religious grounds, dishonoring their conscience rights and potentially depleting the ranks of our military.

This week, a federal judge continued his quest to hold at least one branch of the military accountable for its actions, or inaction, regarding the vaccine. Fox 19 out of Cincinnati reported that:

A federal judge in Cincinnati on Wednesday blocked the Biden administration for the foreseeable future from enforcing the COVID-19 vaccine mandate globally on any servicemembers in the Air Force, Space Force and Air National Guard who requested religious exemptions.

U.S. District Court Judge Matthew McFarland’s preliminary injunction stops the military from discharging or disciplining servicemembers in this local lawsuit that now has an international impact on the military and class-action status as it heads toward trial.

The judge had written two weeks ago: "Members face the same injury: violation of their constitutional freedom by defendants’ clear policy of discrimination religious accommodation requests..."  The story notes that an attorney for some of the clients said the action could affect seven to nine thousand servicemembers nationwide.

Liberty Counsel stated on its website: "Thousands of these service members who oppose receiving the shot due to their sincerely held religious beliefs have been denied their religious exemptions." The site quotes Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver, who said: “This order vindicates religious free exercise protected under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act which the Department of Defense has violated with this unlawful COVID shot mandate. This is a great victory for religious freedom, especially for these Air Force service members who love God and love America. We commend this Ohio court for recognizing the unconstitutional way the military is treating these honorable service members.”

State attorneys general challenge attempt to force LGBTQ agenda into school lunch program

It seems to be a certainty that governmental officials are attempting to inject a radical ideology centered on the LGBTQ agenda into multiple areas of American life - including, of all things, school lunches.

The Christian Post reported recently that 22 state attorneys general have filed a lawsuit challenging the Administration for its attempt to require recipients of federal dollars in a school lunch program to observe certain LBGTQ-friendly regulations.  The article said:

On May 5, the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service announced its intention to interpret "the prohibition on discrimination based on sex found in Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972" to include "discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity."

In a memorandum published that same day, the agency informed state and regional directors of all Food and Nutrition Services programs of the policy change.

The department cited the U.S. Supreme Court's 2020 decision in Bostock v. Clayton County finding that the provision of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibiting discrimination based on sex also applies to sexual orientation and gender identity as the justification for the new interpretation of Title IX.

Some of the claims by the group of AG's, according to The Christian Post:

Among other things, "The plaintiff states requested...declarations preventing retaliation against Title IX and Food and Nutrition Act recipients that 'maintain showers, locker rooms, bathrooms, residential facilities, and other living facilities separated by biological sex or regulate each individual's access to those facilities based on the individual's biological sex.'" Also, the article notes that the states have requested that the court "prohibit retaliation against schools" "that do not require employees or students to use a transgender individual's preferred pronouns," "maintain athletic teams separated by biological sex," or "assign individuals to teams based on biological sex."

Flight attendant wins major settlement over expression of pro-life beliefs

The question of freedom of religious expression on a company employee's personal social media page was at the center of a recent lawsuit filed by a flight attendant, according to a CBN News report.  

From 1996 to 2013, Charlene Carter was a member of the Transport Workers Union, but split with the group when she discovered that the union's ideology was different than hers in some areas, according to the National Right to Work Foundation.  However, she was still forced to pay dues to the TWU.

Fast forward to 2017 - according to the story:

In January 2017, Carter learned that TWU Local 556 president Audrey Stone, and other officials, had used union money to attend the Women's March on Washington D.C., which endorses groups such as Planned Parenthood.

The flight attendant denounced the union's attendance at the event on social media and sent messages to Stone about a recall effort against her.

Officials with the airline for which she worked, Southwest "met with (Carter) regarding her social media posts and questioned why she posted them."  The article notes that, "Southwest authorities claim that Stone considered the social media comments to be a form of harassment toward her, and the airline company subsequently terminated Carter's employment."

Charlene Carter filed a lawsuit that year and recently, a jury in a federal district court handed down and awarded her $4.15 million from Southwest and $950,000 from Local 556 of the Transport Workers Union. Most of the money was for punitive damages.

The article says: "In a Facebook post..., Carter commented, 'Thank You all for your PRAYERS … I GIVE JESUS all the Glory for this WIN.'" She told FOX Business: "Today is a victory for freedom of speech and religious beliefs. Flight attendants should have a voice and nobody should be able to retaliate against a flight attendant for engaging in protected speech against her union..."