A Bremerton High School assistant football coach who says he was sacked for praying at midfield after games has filed a federal lawsuit against the school district.
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Last fall, the district praised Kennedy’s contributions to football program but said his prayer posed a risk it would be held liable for violating the constitutional rights of students or others.
The conservative First Liberty Institute filed the lawsuit in Federal Court in Tacoma.
He had prayed before and after games, sometimes with students, since 2008.
Kennedy pictured on the field left and right. The district asked him to stop when the practice came to its attention previous year, but he persisted by silently taking a knee and praying.
Now, Kennedy is fighting back with a lawsuit against the school district. “I really hope that the school district will give me my job back so I can get back to doing what I love most: coaching my players”.
The school district issued a statement Tuesday saying it would be inappropriate to comment on the pending litigation.
The Christian coach had prayed before and after games since 2008, and many students on the team joined him, but a visitor from another school complained that players may feel compelled to participate and argued the act equates to the school endorsing religion. They fired Kennedy for failing to follow a new district policy forbidding on-duty district employees from any religious activity that is “readily observable” to students or the public.
First Liberty also asks the court to order that Coach Kennedy be provided, “a religious accommodation that affirms his right to offer a brief, quiet prayer at the 50-yard line at the conclusion of BHS football games”.
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First Liberty claims Kennedy had lifted up a “quiet, 30-second prayer” at the 50-yard line for seven years before he was suspended October 28.
