(The Center Square) – A former East Baton Rouge Parish Library employee has filed a federal lawsuit alleging the public library system violated his constitutional rights and federal employment law by firing him after he declined, on religious grounds, to use a co-worker’s preferred pronouns.
Luke Ash, pastor of Stevendale Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, worked as a library technician from March to July 2025. The lawsuit alleges Ash told supervisors his Christian faith prevented him from referring to a biological female employee with male pronouns because doing so would violate his sincerely held religious beliefs. He said he would continue treating all employees respectfully but could not say something he believed to be false.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana, names the City-Parish of East Baton Rouge, the East Baton Rouge Parish Library, Mayor-President Sid Edwards, Library Director Katrina Stokes, the Metropolitan Council, the Library Board of Control and several officials in their official capacities as defendants. Ash is seeking reinstatement, back pay, damages and a court order blocking enforcement of the library’s employee inclusivity policy.
A Library Technician 1 in East Baton Rouge Parish makes between $34,927 – $57,566, according to an active job listing for the position.
The complaint alleges library officials terminated Ash after determining he would not comply with the library’s inclusivity policy, which states employees have the right to be addressed by their chosen names and pronouns and seeks to maintain a workplace where employees are welcomed and respected regardless of gender identity or expression.
Represented by Liberty Counsel and Monroe attorney Michael DuBos, Ash alleges the library violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act by failing to provide a reasonable religious accommodation before terminating him.
According to its website, Liberty Counsel is “a Christian ministry that proclaims, advocates, supports, advances, and defends the good news that God in the person of Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sins and offers forgiveness and eternal life to all who accept him as Lord and Savior.”
The lawsuit also alleges violations of the First Amendment’s protections for free speech and the free exercise of religion, the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause and Louisiana’s Preservation of Religious Freedom Act.
According to the complaint, library officials never engaged in the interactive process required under federal employment law to determine whether a reasonable accommodation could be made. Ash argues he could have addressed coworkers by name rather than pronouns, an accommodation he says would not have imposed an undue hardship on the library.
The lawsuit alleges Ash was called into a meeting with supervisors after discussing the issue with a co-worker and was later told he was being terminated because it was “not working out for the work culture.” Ash contends supervisors told him the library had to follow its inclusivity policy and that his religious beliefs regarding pronoun use were unacceptable.
Liberty Counsel Chairman Mat Staver said the lawsuit rests on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which requires employers to provide reasonable religious accommodations unless doing so would create an undue hardship, as well as claims under the First Amendment, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and Louisiana’s Preservation of Religious Freedom Act.
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“Public employers cannot force employees to choose between their faith and their livelihood,” Staver said. “The Constitution and Title VII require government employers to respect religious liberty, not punish it.”
The dispute has drawn public attention in East Baton Rouge Parish. During a recent Library Board of Control meeting, several pastors and religious leaders urged board members to reinstate Ash, arguing his religious beliefs should have been accommodated. Others defended the library’s policy, saying employees are expected to comply with workplace standards intended to provide an inclusive environment for staff and patrons. The board took no action.
The lawsuit follows months of unsuccessful efforts to resolve the dispute. Ash filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in November 2025, received a Notice of Right to Sue in June and later asked library officials to reinstate him and revise the inclusivity policy before filing suit.
Ash is asking the court to declare the policy unconstitutional, permanently bar its enforcement, reinstate him with full pay and benefits, award compensatory and punitive damages, and require the library to provide reasonable religious accommodations consistent with federal and Louisiana law.
Stokes told The Center Square in an email, “The East Baton Rouge Parish Library does not comment publicly on personnel matters.”
The Center Square requested comments from the Mayor-President’s Office and the Metropolitan Council. No response had been received by publication.
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