Constitutional Law

DOJ Claims Tax Dollars Can Support Religious Groups That Discriminate In Hiring

A recent Department of Justice memorandum says the Bush administration can publicly fund faith-based organizations who flaunt federal antidiscrimination laws by hiring only people of the same faith. The Justice Department memo was posted on the Department’s Web site last week, The New York Times reported. According to the newspaper, the federal grant has already been allotted for World Vision, a group that hires only Christians. World Vision describes its mission as “an international partnership of Christians whose mission is to follow our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in working with the poor and oppressed to promote human transformation, seek justice, and bear witness to the good news of the Kingdom of God.” The grant springs from a Justice Department program that includes a clause prohibiting discrimination based on religion. Georgetown University law professor, Marty Lederman, told the Times that the Justice Department memo does not mesh with U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

Full post as published by ACS Blog on October 20, 2008 (boomark / email).