God, Gays and the Atlanta Fire Department

The Christofascists are always looking for new "martyrs" who are held up as proof that Christians are "under attack" and subject to "persecution."  It is all part of their agenda to claim special rights for themselves while trampling on the rights of others and, as in the instance of former Atlanta fire chief, Kelvin Cochran, ignoring normal personnel policies and intimidating subordinates.  Despite warnings and a suspension for forcing his self-published book on department employees, Cochran continued to violate directives and ultimately was fired.  Now he is a Christian martyr in the ruse that the "religious liberty" of Christians is under assault.  If anything is truly under assault it is the religious freedom of everyone but far right Christians.  An editorial in the New York Times looks at Cochran's justified firing.  Here are excerpts:

Mr. Cochran, a veteran firefighter, is also a deeply religious man, and he was eager to bring his Christian faith into the daily functioning of his department — or, as he put it in a book he authored in 2013, to “cultivate its culture to the glory of God.”

But, as the book revealed, his religious beliefs also include virulent anti-gay views. He was fired on Jan. 6 by Atlanta’s mayor, Kasim Reed, for homophobic language in the book, “Who Told You That You Were Naked?” Among other things, he called homosexuality a “perversion,” compared it to bestiality and pedophilia, and said homosexual acts are “vile, vulgar and inappropriate.”

Mr. Cochran had already been suspended for a month in November for distributing the book to staff members. Following an internal investigation, the mayor did the right thing and dismissed Mr. Cochran for what he called poor judgment: specifically, for failing to get approval for the book’s publication, for commenting publicly on his suspension after being told not to, and for exposing the city to possible discrimination lawsuits.

Cue up the outraged claims that Mr. Cochran’s rights to free speech and religious freedom have been violated — an assertion that is as wrong as it was predictable.

Mr. Cochran said he was fired “for no reason other than my Christian faith.” But he and his sudden coterie of supporters have it backward. This case is not about free speech or religious freedom. It is, as Mr. Reed said at a news conference, about “making sure that we have an environment in government where everyone, no matter who they love, can come to work from 8 to 5:30 and do their job and then go home without fear of being discriminated against.”

Unfortunately, Georgia’s lawmakers are headed in the opposite direction, considering for the second year in a row a “religious-freedom” bill that, like others around the country, would do little more than provide legal cover for anti-gay discrimination.

The First Amendment already protects religious freedom. Nobody can tell Mr. Cochran what he can or cannot believe. If he wants to work as a public official, however, he may not foist his religious views on other city employees who have the right to a boss who does not speak of them as second-class citizens.

Few are more selfish and self-centered than the "godly folk" who think they are above the law and policies that govern others.