This is truly upsetting.

A pastor who also works as a librarian was fired after refusing to use the pronouns that another library employee identifies with.

Pastor Luke Ash, who is the lead pastor of Stevendale Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was canned from his local library for violating its code of conduct that requires employees to use “proper” pronouns.

WBRZ had more details on Ash’s firing:

A man claimed he was unfairly fired from his job after he refused to use the pronouns that another employee said they used.

Luke Ash, a former library employee and pastor, said he knows that what he did was against the library’s code of conduct for employees, but he says calling his co-workers by the pronouns they identify with would be against his own beliefs.

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Ash worked at the library for fewer than six months. He was fired Thursday after having a conversation with a co-worker about another co-worker. In the conversation he refused to refer to the second co-worker by their proper pronouns.

The next day his manager gave him a copy of the inclusivity policy and told him they would figure out how to move forward.

“I refused to use preferred pronouns through the course of conversation,” Ash said. “They got back with me on Thursday morning by giving me the dismissal.”

The policy says the library provides an atmosphere in which all employees are welcomed, accepted and respected. It also says all employees have the right to be addressed by their proper pronouns.

“I believe that there are religious convictions and there are other kinds of convictions, and when those things are in contradiction with each other, there has to be given preference for one or the other,” Ash said.

Watch Ash here:

Newsweek provided context to the story:

Luke Ash, the lead pastor of Stevendale Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, said he was sacked from the East Baton Rouge Parish Library after a conversation on July 7.

Newsweek has contacted the library and Stevendale Baptist Church, on behalf of Ash, via email, for comment.

This incident is part of a broader national debate over the balance between workplace inclusivity policies and individual religious or philosophical beliefs.

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Libraries, schools and other institutions have implemented policies to create respectful environments for all employees, including protections for those who identify as transgender or non-binary.

But some may feel that such policies may conflict with employees’ religious beliefs, resulting in disciplinary action or job loss.

Similar cases in education and other sectors have led to legal challenges, settlements, and public protests, with some leaping to the defense of religious rights and others emphasizing nondiscrimination for LGBTQ+ individuals.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport. View the original article here.
 

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