Catholic health educator Karen "Alexia" Palma refused to compromise her principles by choosing not to teach students about contraceptives. As a result, she was fired from her job.
Palma, an immigrant from Guatemala, worked as a health educator at LCH, a clinic for low-income patients in Houston's inner city. "I emigrated from Guatemala to America as a child," Palma shared with the Gospel Herald. "Finding this job, where I could serve those in need in my community, was my American dream come true."
But in June 2016, her dream job was wrecked after the clinic welcomed a new administration. As a devout Catholic, Palma had an arrangement with her supervisors that she would not teach a class about contraception. Instead, she would show a video on birth control.
The arrangement worked in the past, but the new management did not agree. Amy Leonard, the vice president of the Public Health Department at LCH, gave Palma an ultimatum: either she "put aside" her religious beliefs or face termination.
Palma refused to yield. As a result, she was fired from the job she loves. Thankfully, First Liberty Institute, the largest Christian legal organisation dedicated to defending religious freedom for Americans, took her case. Just this Wednesday, they filed a complaint on behalf of Palma and charged LCH with religious discrimination since teaching birth control class was only less than 2 percent of her job.
"I really loved my job and my patients, but I couldn't do what the company was asking," Palma said. "Through my difficult childhood of abuse and abandonment, God has always been faithful to me, so I must be faithful to him. My faith comes first."
Jeremy Dys, senior counsel for First Liberty Institute, said Palma's firing is nothing but "blatant religious discrimination."
"The company gave Alexia an ultimatum: violate your faith or be fired," he said. "That's a violation of federal law and it is blatant religious discrimination. No one should be fired over their religious beliefs."
