The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed a federal court’s decision denying the government’s motion for summary judgment today in Bridges v. Prince George’s County in the District of Maryland.
In that case, CAIR says Prince George’s County and their contractor, the Prison Ministries of America, violated the First Amendment when they advertised a chaplaincy supervisor job for Prince George’s County Jail along with a “Statement of Applicant’s Christian Faith” that any person applying for the job needed to sign.
The court set the case for trial to determine whether the Statement of Christian Faith meant that the job was only open to Christians, and to determine the extent of Prince George’s County’s involvement in the constitutional violation.
“The court upheld the fundamental principle of religious neutrality that the Government must abide by, even when providing religious programming for incarcerees,” said CAIR Senior Litigation Attorney Justin Sadowsky. “We look forward to proving that the Statement of Christian Faith meant exactly what it said.”
“Edrees Bridges only wanted to serve people who most needed his counsel,” said CAIR Deputy Litigation Director Gadeir Abbas. “It is shocking that he was denied the chance to do that because of his faith.”
BACKGROUNDER:
SEE: CAIR Files Motion for Summary Judgment in Maryland ‘Christians-Only’ Prison Chaplain Case
The First Amendment prohibits discrimination in government employment on the basis of religious belief. But the Statement of Christian Faith asserted that the chaplaincy supervisor must be “committed to a lifestyle of Christianity and agree with” the Prison Ministries of America’s expressly Christian “statement of faith.”
Imam Edrees Bridges, who volunteered at Prince George’s County jail, and who has a career and graduate training in law enforcement and chaplaincy services, could not sign the Statement because he was Muslim.
Washington, D.C., based CAIR defends the rights of American Muslim workers, as well as incarcerated American Muslims in cases throughout the country.
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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CONTACT: CAIR Deputy Litigation Director Gadeir Abbas, 720-251-0425, gabbas@cair.com; CAIR Senior Litigation Attorney Justin Sadowsky, 646-785-9154, jsadowsky@cair.com; CAIR Maryland Director Zainab Chaudry, 410-971-6062, zchaudry@cair.com