Contact: John Eidsmoe, Foundation for Moral Law, 334-262-1245, info@morallaw.org  

MONTGOMERY, Ala., Aug. 23, 2018 /Christian Newswire/ -- The Foundation for Moral Law ("the Foundation") filed an amicus brief in the United States Supreme Court today urging it to protect religious liberty from transgender activism. In this case, R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, Inc. v. EEOC, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued a funeral home, owned by Christians, that refused to allow a male funeral director to dress as a female. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that Title VII's prohibition of sex discrimination applies to transgender individuals and that the funeral home owners' religious objections did not protect them from liability.
 
In October 2016, the Supreme Court had granted certiorari to consider whether federal regulations required public schools to allow students who claimed to be transgender to use the bathroom of their choice. However, when the Trump administration came to power in 2017, it changed positions from the Obama administration, holding that schools may segregate students based on their biological sex in bathrooms and locker rooms. The Supreme Court therefore declined to decide the issue at that time. Now, the Supreme Court is being asked to consider the transgender question in the workplace instead of in schools.

Foundation President Kayla Moore said, "Religious liberty is an unalienable right given by God. The courts cannot force the funeral home owners in this case to surrender that right."

Foundation Senior Counsel John Eidsmoe added, "By allowing a funeral director to cross-dress, the Sixth Circuit forgot about the rights of the deceased's family members, who often want a funeral to be conducted in accordance with their religious beliefs or the religious beliefs of the deceased. When saying goodbye to a loved one, family members should not have to face an additional issue that could cause tension."

Matt Clark, the Foundation attorney who submitted the brief, also said, "If the Sixth Circuit's decision is allowed to stand, then employers will probably make everyone in their workplace respect the pronoun and bathroom preferences of the transgender employees. Religious employees who have objections will then be forced to choose between their jobs and their faith. They should not be placed in such a dilemma."
 
The Foundation is a non-profit legal organization based in Montgomery, Alabama, devoted to the defense of religious liberty and promoting a strict interpretation of the Constitution as intended by its Framers.