Catholic Organizations Challenge Firing of Lesbian Religion Teacher

June 26, 2010

DignityUSA

A Joint Statement from the leaders of Call To Action Fortunate Families DignityUSA and New Ways Ministry<o:p></o:p> Denver – June 21 2010 - Toni Talarico was fired by Catholic officials despite a sterling record of 28 years of teaching religion at a Catholic parish in Denver.  She was fired because she happens to be a lesbian.  And although Toni was fired in January of this year the story is now coming to light after months of wrangling over her accrued benefits.  <o:p></o:p> Leaders from four major Catholic advocacy groups that support the full equality of lesbian gay bisexual and transgender people released the following statement:<o:p></o:p> As leaders in DignityUSA Call To Action Fortunate Families and New Ways Ministry we represent hundreds of thousands of progressive Roman Catholics who are asking the church to live up to its own history of standing on the side of those who are treated unfairly.  Sadly this is one more textbook case of how the church hierarchy ignores its own values and gets it wrong when they discover someone is lesbian or gay. Instead of looking at the total life of a person these church DignityUSAistrators lean on legalism and judgmental ideology.  Instead of listening to parishioners talk about Ms. Talarico’s talents and commitment to teaching they follow directives from distant church officials with no personal knowledge of the situation.  Instead of finding a solution that values the human dignity of Ms. Talarico and the feelings of the students and their families who love her they make decisions based on flawed and outdated policies. The majority of Catholics in the pews across the United States want the Catholic Church to be a community where all people regardless of sexual orientation are treated equally and fairly.  We envision a church where all can contribute their God-given gifts in service to the community.  We work towards a day when all in the church will recognize that all love is from God and that all love mirrors the love that God has for us all. We join all Catholics who are speaking out for love and fairness as we stand in solidarity with Ms. Talarico. We call on the Archdiocese of Denver and Guardian Angels parish to reverse their unjust decisions.  We call for policies based on respect and fairness.  We pray that the entire church in Denver will take this opportunity to affirm the wholeness of God’s creation including lesbian gay bisexual and transgender people. <o:p></o:p> Contacts:<o:p></o:p> Francis DeBernardo Executive Director <a href=http://newwaysministry.org>New Ways Ministry</a> 301-277-5674 newwaysministry.org<o:p></o:p> Nicole Sotelo Communications Director <a href=http://cta-usa.org>Call To Action</a> 773.404.0004 x285 cta-usa.org<o:p></o:p> Casey Lopata President <a href=http://fortunatefamilies.com>Fortunate Families</a> 585-698-6100 fortunatefamilies.com                                           <o:p></o:p> Marianne Duddy-Burke Executive Director <a href=http://dignityusa.org>DignityUSA</a> 617-669-7810 dignityusa.org                                                                                     <o:p></o:p>

Catholic Organizations Challenge Firing of Lesbian Religion Teacher

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