Issues@Hand

AFA initiatives, Christian activism, news briefs

April 2017 – Bill Diss (above), a pro-life Catholic teacher at Benson High School in Portland, Oregon, was turned out of his classroom after he excused himself from facilitating a Planned Parenthood sponsored presentation in his class in 2012. The program he objected to was the Teen Outreach Program, which includes pregnancy prevention as part of its curriculum – although a disclaimer on the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy website says less than 15% of the program could be considered sex ed.

Diss was terminated from his teaching position in November 2013. Life Legal Defense Foundation filed an employee discrimination complaint on his behalf.

In January 2016, Judge Paul Papak of the Oregon U.S District Court issued a summary judgment, meaning the case cannot go before a jury, and ruled that Diss had no case because TOP “was in no way a burden on his religious beliefs.” LLDF is appealing the case to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

onenewsnow.com, 1/20/17; lifenews.com, 12/26/16