Legally, the issue remains unclear, especially for private religious institutions. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bans employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin, but no federal law currently protects Americans from discrimination based on sexual orientation. Gay-rights supporters (and President Biden) say the Equality Act, still under debate, helps address that omission.
“This is such an evolving area,” says legal analyst Whitney Traylor. “It’s always complicated when you have a religious institution because there’s the Religious Freedom Act and some of these other exceptions.” The Supreme Court hasn’t yet included sexuality protections under the Civil Rights Act, she says, though several federal appeals courts have.
If Coach Tonga were to sue, says law professor Don Mayer, Valor’s “defense…based on Title VII sex discrimination would be this ministerial exception under the First Amendment. You’d be very surprised if the [hiring] contract didn’t include some of that language where they say everybody here is part of that mission and our mission is to teach Christian values.”
