Manhattan, USA - In a decision that strengthens President Bush's "faith-based initiatives" program, Judge Sidney H. Stein of United States District Court in Manhattan has upheld the Salvation Army's right to apply a religious litmus test to its employees, even those in a secular arm of the organization that gets most of its money from the government. The judge rejected a claim by 18 employees that the Salvation Army forfeited its right to discriminate by accepting government money.
The employees, in the social services operation of the group's New York office, filed the suit after the Salvation Army began requiring them to affirm and uphold its Christian mission, to list the churches they attended, and in one case, to identify gay co-workers.