Texas
Feds accuse Texas prison agency of discriminating against employee for wearing a headscarf
:focal(0x0:3000x1657)/static.texastribune.org/media/files/99aca156e6bf021c048e3d43414a6e42/TDCJ_GURNEY_UNIT_MDN_TT?ssl=1 "Feds accuse Texas prison agency of discriminating against employee for wearing a headscarf")
Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit Friday accusing the Texas Department of Criminal Justice of discriminating against one of its former employees based on her religious beliefs.
The federal lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of Texas, alleges that the state agency denied Franches Spears religious accommodations by refusing to allow the non-uniformed employee to wear a head covering, according to court documents.
“Employers cannot require employees to forfeit their religious beliefs or improperly question the sincerity of those beliefs,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said in a statement announcing the lawsuit. “This lawsuit is a reminder to all employers of their clear legal obligation to offer reasonable religious accommodations. In our country, employers cannot force an employee to choose between their faith and their job.”
The lawsuit alleges the Texas prison agency’s refusal to accommodate Spears’ religious practice violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
“TDCJ does not comment on pending litigation, but the agency respects the religious rights of all employees and inmates,” Hannah Haney, the agency’s deputy director of communications, told The Texas Tribune in a statement.
In July 2019, Spears was hired to work as a clerk at the Pam Lychner State Jail, a TDCJ facility in Humble, northeast of Houston.
In line with her Ifa beliefs, Spears began wearing a headscarf to work in September 2019. Ifa, a West African religion, dictates that some of its practitioners cover their “head with a head dressing during periods of religious ceremony, mourning, or to protect her spiritual power,” the complaint read.
Shortly after Spears began wearing the covering, she met with Human Resources Specialist Elizabeth Fisk to explain the religious significance behind the head dressing. According to the complaint, Fisk responded to Spears’ by saying, “Basically you just pray to a rock.”
Fisk told Spears that she could either remove her headscarf and continue working or go home until the agency decided on her religious accommodation request. TDCJ placed Spears on unpaid leave, according to court filings.
“TDCJ further questioned the sincerity of Spears’s faith when Bailey mailed a letter demanding documentation or a statement from a religious institution pointing to the specific Ifa belief or doctrine that supported the necessity of Spears’s head covering,” the complaint read, referring to testimony from TDCJ’s Religious Accommodation Coordinator Terry Bailey.
While TDCJ was considering Spears’ request for religious accommodation she received a “salary warrant letter” from the agency in November 2019. She understood the letter as a termination notice demanding the return of TDCJ property, like identification cards and keys, in order to receive her final paycheck.
In February 2020, Spears filed a complaint against TDCJ with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The federal agency found reasonable cause that TDCJ discriminated against Spears and attempted to resolve the issue through mediation. When that failed, the EEOC referred the case to the DOJ.
The complaint asks TDCJ to compensate Spears for lost wages and other damages related to the incident. Additionally, the Justice Department wants the Texas agency to institute religious accommodation policies.
We’ve got big things in store for you at The Texas Tribune Festival, happening Sept. 5–7 in downtown Austin. Join us for three days of big, bold conversations about politics, public policy and the day’s news.
AUSTIN – Texas officials are rolling out a new online hub aimed at helping residents spot and report the New World screwworm, a pest Gov. Greg Abbott says threatens livestock, wildlife, and the state’s rural economy.
Abbott announced the launch of screwworm.texas.gov, an enhanced website housed in the Texas Division of Emergency Management’s Disaster Portal that he described as a “one-stop shop” for information and resources tied to the state’s response.
The New World screwworm poses a direct threat to Texas livestock, wildlife, and our rural economy,” Abbott said. “This new website puts essential tools in the hands of our producers, veterinarians, and families. Screwworm.texas.gov delivers the facts, maps, identification methods, and certification resources Texans need to detect problems early and report cases without delay. Now every Texan has the information to act. Texas will protect our land, our animals, and our way of life from this pest.
According to the governor’s office, the site is designed to provide “actionable and reliable multimedia information” about the New World screwworm, including fact sheets, videos, and educational materials.
The portal includes background information, guidance on how to spot the pest, sample collection procedures, Texas Animal Health Commission New World screwworm zone maps, the U.S. Department of Agriculture case dashboard, links to best practices for livestock and wildlife, and details on registering for a new no-cost New World screwworm Certified Inspector Training.
The governor’s office said state and federal partners are working together to detect, control and contain the spread, and that expanding public outreach and providing clear information is a key part of reducing risk.
Abbott’s office also highlighted actions taken by the governor in response to the pest, including:
- Directing the creation of a joint Texas New World screwworm Response Team
- Joining USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins to announce a $750 million investment in a new sterile fly production facility in Edinburg
- Issuing a statewide disaster declaration ahead of the first detection
- Deploying state resources and activating the State Emergency Operations Center after the first confirmed Texas cases
- Visiting the Knipling-Bushland U.S. Livestock Insects Research Laboratory in Kerrville for a briefing
- Launching a free online training course to certify more inspectors
- Announcing federal funding to strengthen inspection capacity.
Texans are urged to inspect livestock and pets for wounds and report suspected cases immediately, including in wildlife.
For livestock and pets, suspected cases should be reported to the Texas Animal Health Commission’s 24-hour veterinarian call line at 1-800-550-8242.
For wildlife, reports should be made to Texas Parks and Wildlife’s 24-hour biologists’ call line at 512-389-4505. Officials also warn people not to move affected animals.
More information and updates are available at screwworm.texas.gov and screwworm.gov.
More than 150 troops at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas have been infected with influenza over the past three weeks — a major outbreak less than two months after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said American troops would no longer be required to be vaccinated against the flu.
-
Technology4 minutes agoMoves of the Diamond Hand is an unfinished, irresistibly weird dice-based RPG
-
World11 minutes agoMan charged with attempted murder, released after allegedly forcing toddler into crocodile enclosure at zoo
-
Politics13 minutes agoTrump says Iran missiles ‘aren’t the problem’ after White House made them central to war rationale
-
Health19 minutes agoPopular weight-loss drugs linked to unexpected male fertility benefit
-
Sports26 minutes agoCubs look to build on offensive breakout against struggling Blue Jays starter Patrick Corbin
-
Technology29 minutes agoShould you change your phone number after a hack?
-
Business34 minutes agoFord sues L.A. lemon law firm alleging ‘utter fabrications’ inflated fees by 7,000%
-
Entertainment41 minutes agoFrom YouTube to the multiplex: How low-budget horror films are beating big-budget studio bets
