The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that two California teachers cannot sue the private religious schools that fired them for employment discrimination because of constitutional language that protects religious freedom. “The religious education and formation of students is the very reason for the existence of most private religious schools, and therefore the selection and supervision of the teachers upon whom the schools rely to do this work lie at the core of their mission,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the 7-2 majority. “Today’s ruling means religious institutions who wish to fire or refuse to hire school teachers or other staff based on age, race, sexual orientation, or other discriminatory factors now have legal cover for doing so,” said Maggie Siddiqi of the Center for American Progress.
