[acb-hsp] Remediation That the Tolerant Left Won't Tolerate

[Claude Everett]

This looks to be an attempt to "reverse think", a situation to the advantage
of the conservative religious right. 


Regards,
Claude Everett
"I am opposing a social order in which it is possible for one man who does
absolutely nothing that is useful to amass a fortune of hundreds of millions
of dollars, while millions of men and women who work all the days of their
lives secure barely enough for a wretched existence." 
Eugene Victor Debs  
-----Original Message-----
From: acb-hsp-bounces at acb.org [mailto:acb-hsp-bounces at acb.org] On Behalf Of
peter altschul
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2011 7:24 AM
To: Acbhsp
Subject: [acb-hsp] Remediation That the Tolerant Left Won't Tolerate

Remediation for those the tolerant left won't tolerate
  David Cortman
  In January 2009, Julea Ward, who is a Christian, was a graduate student in
the counseling program at Eastern Michigan University.  
She was nearing the end of the program and had accumulated a 3.91 GPA.  Then
she was expelled.
  Why? Well, EMU asked her to counsel a client in a manner that would have
violated her Biblically-based faith and values.  
Following standard profession practice, she asked her supervising professor
whether it would be okay to reassign the client to a different counselor.
EMU expelled her from the program for making this simple referral request,
and because of the religious beliefs that motivated it.
  Unfortunately, media reports on Ward's lawsuit often claim that EMU
expelled her for refusing to counsel gay clients.  This is simply untrue.
She asked for the referral because her religious beliefs prevent her from
providing counseling on any non-marital sexual relationship.  This means
Ward would raise the same values conflict regardless of the sexual
orientation of the client seeking such assistance.
  Put simply, Ward would raise the same conflict and seek a referral
regardless of whether the client was homosexual and seeking counseling on a
non-marital sexual relationship (which is the context in which her referral
request arose) or if the client was heterosexual and seeking counseling on a
non-marital sexual relationship.  The "gay animus" angle often seen in media
reports is dead wrong.
  It is also important to note that referrals, including those based on
values conflicts, are common and accepted in the counseling profession.  The
code of ethics for the profession contains two provisions endorsing the
practice of referring clients.  Ward acted consistent with these provisions,
and with the advice of her supervising professor, by having a client
reassigned in a situation where she believed another counselor would be
better suited to meet his needs.  The profession is, after all, most
concerned with serving the best interests of clients.  And sometimes, a
client's best interests are served by working with a different counselor.
  Rather than approving Ward's simple request to refer a single client, EMU
initiated disciplinary proceedings against her.  EMU also informed Ward that
the only way she could remain in the counseling program was if she agreed to
undergo a "remediation" 
program aimed at changing her "belief system."
  Unsurprisingly, Ward declined the "remediation" program.  And who would
agree to such a thing? It is hard to imagine any student agreeing to change
their beliefs as a condition to getting their degree.
  In addition to the Orwellian "remediation" program, the disciplinary
proceedings also involved EMU professors putting Ward's religious beliefs on
trial.
  For example, during Ward's final disciplinary hearing, Suzanne Dugger, one
of EMU's counseling faculty, asked Ms.  Ward whether she viewed her "brand
of Christianity as superior" to other Christians who may disagree with her.
And Perry Francis, another EMU faculty member, told Ward he was going to
take her on a btheological boutb and then directly attacked her
understanding and interpretation of scripture.
  Throughout these things, Ward remained steadfast, refusing to abandon her
religious convictions or violate them as a condition to getting her degree.
  What is amazing about Ward's situation is EMU's harsh and drastic reaction
to her request to refer a single client.  Rather than honoring Ward's simple
request (which, again, was consistent with the professional standards
regarding referral), EMU expelled an academically stellar student and, in
the process of doing so, targeted and attacked the religious beliefs that
motivated her referral request and told her she had to change them to get
her degree.
  Now, instead of being a Christian and a graduate student at EMU, Ward is
but another Christian whom the tolerant left will not tolerate.
  David Cortman serves as senior legal counsel with the Alliance Defense
Fund at its Atlanta Regional Service Center in Georgia, where he heads
litigation efforts to defend and reclaim the First Amendment rights of
public school students across the nation.  
Cortman joined ADF in 2005, and is admitted to the bar in Georgia, Florida,
and the District of Columbia.  He has practiced law since 1996 and graduated
magna cum laude from the Regent University School of Law, where he earned
his J.D.
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