A Roman Catholic school in Portland has changed its policy on hiring gay employees following the uproar over its decision to withdraw a job offer to a lesbian. The St. Mary’s Academy board voted for the change Wednesday night. In an email to parents, school president Christina Friedhoff said St. Mary’s is a diverse community that welcomes gay and lesbian students and faculty. The decision not to hire Lauren Brown for a college counseling position became public Tuesday. The move was quickly criticized by students, parents and people throughout Portland, including Mayor Charlie Hales and Columbia Sportswear CEO Tim Boyle. Boyle is a major donor to the all-girls school his wife attended. The position offered to Brown has been filled, but the school says it will reach out to her for a possible reconciliation.
Lost in the excitement over the Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage is the still all too prevalent reality that in most of this country someone could be fired or refused employment simply because of who and how they love. Discrimination against the LGBT community is still perfectly legal in far too many jurisdictions. Those whose only “offense” is their sexual orientation have no recourse but to accept their status as second-class citizens.
Or do they? Every now and again, someone’s presented with the opportunity to reveal a person or institution for their racism, homophobia, and/or generally hateful, self-superior ways. In this case, it’s a arm of the Catholic Church. Think about that for a moment- a part of a church purporting to represent the teachings of Jesus Christ is STILL heavily invested in LGBT discrimination. A reasonable person would have to wonder why a Catholic school- St. Mary’s Academy, and all-girls high school in downtown Portland- is so obsessed with what an adult does behind closed doors. What are they so afraid of…and why do they insist on demonizing those who differ from “normal” people only in their sexuality?
In a society where equality and justice prevailed, people like me could devote our energies to far more positive and prosaic pursuits. Sadly, America isn’t a society where freedom means much, because as long as one of us isn’t free, none of us are. It would be SO much easier to accept and love someone for their humanity; instead we remain trapped in a seemingly inescapable web of hatred, anger, and oppression. Even here in Portland, where we bleeding-heart, Volvo-driving Liberals like to pat ourselves on the back about the Progressive values of our hometown, discrimination can be (and, sadly, still is) a thing.
The Catholic Church in general, and St. Mary’s Academy in particular, have fostered and legitimized hatred and discrimination for far too long. Portlanders, who generally don’t deal well with haters and bigots, are angry that St. Mary’s withdrew an offer of employment because Brown informed the school she’s a lesbian. She could be the best fit the school might ever hope to find…but the only thing that mattered in the end was the “L” word- something that has no impact on her ability to do the job she was enthusiastically hired to do. In this day and age, how truly pathetic is that? It doesn’t matter to St. Mary’s (and, by extension, to the Catholic Church) what a person brings to the table; the final determining factor of their worthiness is who and how they love. How is it that an institution that takes spreading the love of Jesus Christ as part of its mission could be so thoroughly and openly hypocritical?
St. Mary’s is now saying the position they initially offered to Brown has been filled (how convenient) and that they hope to “reach out to her for a possible reconciliation.” They have a self-created PR nightmare on their hands and are clearly looking for a way out of it that allows them to save face and maintain the status quo, which seems increasingly unlikely. Making matters even worse, it’s come to light that St. Mary’s tried to buy Brown’s silence. From the outset, St. Mary’s has handled this self-inflicted PR fiasco in a ham-handed and frankly embarrassing manner…and the (richly deserved) blowback hasn’t been pretty or pleasant. This is what happens when you engage in, try to cover up, and then attempt to justify hatred and bigotry in Portland.
Full credit to the student body at St. Mary’s, and the community of alumni and supporters, who’ve made it clear they aren’t about to accept the school’s display of homophobia quietly. St. Mary’s is in a midst of a major effort to get their side of the story out, having held three meetings with students, faculty, and the community to listen and explain their side of the story. The school’s board of directors have agreed to change the hiring policy to reflect an attitude of tolerance and non-discrimination. Left unsaid is how St. Mary’s plans to achieve “reconciliation” with Ms. Brown. She deserves better than an employer steeped in hatred and homophobia, but I think she realizes there are lessons in this story for all of us. It’ll be interesting to see where things go from here…as well as how long it will take for the community at large to forgive St. Mary’s. Portland isn’t a place which forgives and forgets open, cynical displays of discrimination- especially against the LGBT community- easily.
This story may fade from the media’s attention, but I have a feeling it’s far from over. Stay tuned….
