{"id":2580305,"date":"2026-03-16T11:07:59","date_gmt":"2026-03-16T15:07:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/christian-engineer-in-los-angeles-sues-to-make-sure-he-can-abstain-from-pride-month\/"},"modified":"2026-03-16T11:12:21","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T15:12:21","slug":"christian-engineer-in-los-angeles-sues-to-make-sure-he-can-abstain-from-pride-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/christian-engineer-in-los-angeles-sues-to-make-sure-he-can-abstain-from-pride-month\/","title":{"rendered":"Christian Engineer in Los Angeles Sues to Make Sure He Can Abstain from &#8216;Pride Month&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fchristian-engineer-in-los-angeles-sues-to-make-sure-he-can-abstain-from-pride-month%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2580305&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-china-going-to-eat-our-lunch-2019-candidate-biden-eat-our-lunch-cmon-man\/\" title=\"Biden: China \u2018Going To Eat Our Lunch.\u2019 2019 Candidate Biden: \u2018Eat Our Lunch? C\u2019mon, Man!\u2019\">civil engineer<\/a> employed by Los Angeles County is suing to avoid endorsing Pride Month, arguing it conflicts with his Christian beliefs. Eric Batman, who has worked for the county for 24 years, wants to work remotely during June to avoid being in the workplace when a Pride flag is displayed. His supporters, Liberty Counsel, say he is seeking an injunction against a denial they deem unlawful under Title VII, the First adn Fourteenth Amendments, and California\u2019s Fair Employment and housing Act, noting that other religious employees have been allowed remote work for other reasons like Ramadan. The county says Batman\u2019s request would undermine an inclusive environment, noting that his prior remote-work accommodations were not granted, and has suggested mental health counseling as an alternative.Liberty Counsel founder Mat Staver argues the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >case protects constitutional rights<\/a> and accuses the county of religious and viewpoint discrimination.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>A civil engineer who works for Los Angeles County is filing a lawsuit to ensure he is not forced to endorse &ldquo;pride month,&rdquo; which conflicts with his Christian beliefs.<\/p>\n<p>Eric Batman has worked for Los Angeles County for the past 24 years, and yet the Department of Public Works is denying his request to work remotely for the month of June, per a March 10 <a href=\"https:\/\/lc.org\/newsroom\/details\/031026-engineer-sues-la-county-over-denied-religious-accommodation-for-pride-month\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">release<\/a> from Liberty Counsel.<\/p>\n<p>He wants to avoid being present in his workplace while they display a &ldquo;pride&rdquo; flag.<\/p>\n<p>Batman, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/racial-consultants-took-ppp-loans-intended-for-struggling-businesses-despite-industrys-boom\/\" title=\"Racial Consultants Took PPP Loans Intended For Struggling Businesses Despite Industry\u2019s Boom\">part-time employee<\/a>, is seeking &ldquo;an injunction against his unconstitutional denial which is unlawful under Title VII, the First and Fourteenth Amendments, and California&rsquo;s Fair Employment and Housing Act,&rdquo; Liberty Counsel said in the release.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The county has allowed other religious employees to work remotely for other reasons, such as Ramadan, but is discriminating against Batman for his Christian beliefs,&rdquo; the legal advocacy group added.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Back in 2023, Los Angeles County started requiring its agencies to fly the &ldquo;Progress Pride Flag&rdquo; in June.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">We filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Eric Batman, a longtime Los Angeles County civil engineer who was unlawfully denied a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/unanimous-supreme-court-backs-catholic-adoption-agency-in-dispute-over-gay-foster-parents\/\" title=\"Unanimous Supreme Court Backs Catholic Adoption Agency in Dispute Over Gay Foster Parents\">religious accommodation<\/a> to abstain from tacitly endorsing the &ldquo;LGBTQ Pride&rdquo; flag at his workplace.<\/p>\n<p>Batman is suing the county and its Department of&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/38Br8aUftY\">pic.twitter.com\/38Br8aUftY<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Liberty Counsel (@libertycounsel) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/libertycounsel\/status\/2031462311437725931?\">March 10, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>That&rsquo;s the flag which includes not only rainbow stripes, but black and brown stripes, a purple ring, a yellow triangle, and other elements.<\/p>\n<p>Batman requested accommodations in 2024 and 2025 as well, since he had previously worked remotely during a period of building construction.<\/p>\n<p>But Los Angeles County officials said his request was counterproductive to an &ldquo;inclusive and welcoming environment for all.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>They suggested he seek out &ldquo;mental health counseling&rdquo; if the rainbow flag distressed him.<\/p>\n<p>Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver contended that the response violated the First Amendment.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Senior Civil Engineer Eric Batman requested a reasonable religious accommodation with no undue hardship on the county, yet it was unlawfully denied without the required interactive process,&rdquo; he said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Constitution does not allow the government &mdash; or a government employer &mdash; to put citizens in the impossible position of choosing between their conscience and their livelihood,&rdquo; he added.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When the state compels employees to act against their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republicans-push-bill-aimed-at-balancing-lgbt-rights-and-religious-freedom\/\" title=\"House Republicans Push Bill Aimed at Balancing LGBT Rights and ... Freedom\">sincerely held religious beliefs<\/a>, it crosses a constitutional line that courts have repeatedly said cannot be crossed,&rdquo; Staver said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Viewpoint discrimination is unlawful and violates the First Amendment and religious discrimination violates Title VII.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Eric Batman, a civil engineer for Los Angeles County who has worked there for 24 years, has filed a federal lawsuit to prevent the county from requiring him to endorse Pride Month because it conflicts with his Christian beliefs. He is asking for an injunction and a remote-work arrangement for June so he won\u2019t have to be at a workplace displaying the Pride flag. Batman, a part-time employee, says the county\u2019s denial violates Title VII, the First and Fourteenth Amendments, and California\u2019s Fair Employment and Housing Act. Liberty Counsel says the county has allowed other religious employees to work remotely for reasons like Ramadan, implying discrimination against Batman for his faith.<\/p>\n<p>The case comes after Los Angeles County began requiring the display of the \u201cProgress Pride Flag\u201d in June. Batman had requested accommodations in 2024 and 2025 as well, since he had previously worked remotely during a building project, but county officials said remote work would undermine an inclusive environment and suggested mental health counseling instead. Liberty Counsel founder Mat Staver contends that the county\u2019s response violates the First Amendment, arguing that a government employer cannot force employees to choose between their conscience and their livelihood, and that denying his client\u2019s religious beliefs also entails unlawful viewpoint discrimination under the First Amendment and Title VII<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2580306,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Michael-Featured-Image-805.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[548,33651],"tags":[4585,75059,70621,75887,72820],"class_list":["post-2580305","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-conservative-news-daily","category-the-western-journal","tag-lawsuit","tag-lgbtq-rights-3","tag-los-angeles-2","tag-pride-month-2","tag-religious-liberty-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Michael-Featured-Image-805.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2580305","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2580305"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2580305\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2580313,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2580305\/revisions\/2580313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2580306"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2580305"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2580305"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2580305"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}