Ten Commandments Pin Costs Alabamian His Job
by Allie Martin and Jody Brown
May 21, 2004
(AgapePress) - A former executive in the Hoover, Alabama, Chamber of Commerce claims he was fired because he refused to remove a Ten Commandments pin from his lapel. The former Chamber employee says his case should serve as a wake-up call for Christians.Twenty-three-year-old Christopher Word served as membership services director for the Hoover Chamber of Commerce for nine months before he was fired earlier this week. Word says his boss, Chamber director Bill Powell, voiced concerns about the pin as a possible political statement in light of the controversy over former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore.
Word says Powell gave him an ultimatum earlier this week: remove the pin at work, or lose his job. Word explains that he had a choice to make -- and that he ultimately made the right decision.
"I could keep the job and have job security -- or I could be willing to stand up for what's right, make a stand on what I believe, and stand on principles and conviction," he recalls. "The second [option] was really the only decision that I could make -- so I chose it. Even if it cost me my job, I was going to stand by what I believed in."
According to Word, his troubles began several weeks ago after a long-time Chamber member questioned the political ramifications of the pin. He contends that his firing demonstrates the perilous times in which we live, calling the action a "drastic change" from the normal course of events.
"In the past " anyone who has lost a job over an issue like this has been a government official or some kind of public office holder," he observes. "This time they came after just an 'average Joe' like me -- and all I can think about is if this happened to me this time, who could be next? It could be you."
A press release from the Hoover Chamber states that Powell "personally observed" Word using his position as a "platform to advocate his personal political views" about Roy Moore. "By that action, [Word] crossed the political line," the Chamber says, explaining that the Chamber employee was terminated for making political statements in the course of his employment.
"Clearly, the Chamber cannot allow any employee at work to wear a lapel pin expressing a partisan political position, irrespective of whether the message is for against Judge Moore," the press statement reads. "Simply put, since the Chamber had not taken a position on that issue, it could not allow an employee to imply that it had."
But two Alabama congressmen see it Word's way. Congressman Spencer Bachus says it is outrageous that the Chamber fired Word for wearing a Ten Commandments pin. The Alabama Republican said he has talked to Word and believes the Chamber's decision is wrong and violates Word's First Amendment rights.
Fellow Alabama Congressman Robert Aderholt agrees with Bachus. In a statement, Aderholt said the pin was not a political statement and he knows that Word was motivated by faith. Word worked for Alabama Republican, an outspoken leader on the issue of religious freedom and expression, four years ago.
And what does the former Alabama chief justice have to say about it? "The Hoover Chamber of Commerce should be embarrassed and ashamed to force a young man like Christopher Word to choose between his faith and his job," Moore says. "We are fortunate to have men like Christopher who stand firm in the face of tyranny and will not surrender their right to acknowledge God."
The former chief justice attends Crosspoint Community Church, where Word's father is executive pastor.
