I think we can all remember the Kentucky county clerk, Kim Davis, who last year was sent to jail for refusing to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples because it was against her religious beliefs despite the fact that the Supreme Court ruled marriages between same-sex couples were legal. There is really no way to explain what she was doing except violating federal law.
Just a year later the Social Security Administration is dealing with its own employee who is refusing to participate in mandatory LGBT training by watching a video about gay, transgender and bisexual diversity. David Hall, who has worked at the Social Security Administration for 14 years, said he did not believe God would want him to watch such a video according to this story in the Chicago Tribune.
Social Security officials indicated that the LBGT training is an effort to “support an inclusive work environment, as well as exemplary customer service.”
Hall said watching such a video would’ve been “an abomination” and said “I am not going to certify sin.”
It was reported that Hall’s superiors at Social Security have been trying to get Hall to watch the video since April of this year. There is no doubt that it is Hall’s right to object and not watch the video, but he then has to be ready to pay the consequences for such an action like termination, which is now reportedly a real possibility. One has to wonder that if Hall won’t even watch a video about LGBT issues then what would his position be about assisting an LGBT customer at Social Security? Would he be able to provide the same amount of respect to this person as to someone who is heterosexual? Hopefully we won’t have to ask this question much longer because Social Security should dismiss Mr. Hall, not for his believes, but for his refusal to do his job.
