PJI to Oregon Court of Appeals: Don’t Foster Religious Discrimination in Foster Care Licensing

SALEM, OR – In denying a Christian couple a foster care license solely because their sincerely religious beliefs prevents them from affirming homosexuality and transgenderism, the Oregon’s Department of Human Services (“DHS”) unconstitutionally fostered religious discrimination.

Pacific Justice Institute’s (PJI) Oregon-based attorney, Ray D. Hacke appeared before the Oregon Court of Appeals for an oral argument on July 24 representing Shawn and Teresa Kellim, asking the court to prohibit religious discrimination in the foster care licensing process.

DHS’ order denying the Kellims a foster care license openly acknowledged that it was the Kellims’ “faith-based refusal to affirm LGBT+ youth … that triggered the Department’s decision to end Applicants’ certification process.”

The Kellims believe in biblical principles of love, kindness, and compassion—even, if not especially, where children, LGBT+ or otherwise, are concerned. However, they also believe that because Jesus didn’t encourage what the Bible calls “sin” in the name of love, kindness, and compassion, they can’t, either.

“Our nation’s Supreme Court has recognized that many people who hold traditional biblical views concerning marriage, gender, and sexuality do so based on decent and honorable religious premises,” Hacke said. “Government entities like DHS either seem to forget that far more often than they should or downright ignore it. When they do, they show a clear and impermissible hostility toward religious beliefs that the Constitution simply does not allow.”

In its defense, DHS has raised concerns about “caregiver rejection,” asserting that exposure to beliefs like the Kellims’ could lead LGBT+ foster children to harm, if not kill, themselves. However, a study published earlier this year showed that adults who identify as “transgender” and undergo so-called “transition” surgery are 12 times more likely to commit suicide. The study’s findings suggest “affirming” gender dysphoria does not actually resolve the underlying mental issues and that such affirmation may do more harm than good.

PJI President Brad Dacus explained, “While DHS is right to focus on the mental and emotional well-being of kids in state care, they’ve unfairly painted Christians like the Kellims as a threat to LGBT+ youth. This portrayal is not only unconstitutional but also deprives Oregon’s foster kids of dedicated adults ready to provide them with the love and guidance they desperately need. PJI is proud to support the Kellims in challenging DHS’s unconstitutional actions.”