Speaking of Louisiana College, a lawsuit ... and discrimination (?)

     And so, here is a controversy that I did not expect.
     Is it fake news? No, the lawsuit is a filed fact. But, maybe, one side or the other is not telling the truth. Who the heck knows?
     The e-mail and Facebook note I posted early Tuesday morning turned into a response stronger than anything I have had for quite some time.
     My response to that: Surprise!
     But when religion is involved ...
     In case you missed it, the post was a link to a Feb. 22  Associated Press wire story involving a position on the Louisiana College football coaching staff.
     Here are the lead paragraphs:
     The president of a private Baptist college in Louisiana refused to approve a football coach's hiring because of what he called the applicant's "Jewish blood," a federal lawsuit claims.
     Joshua Bonadona sued Louisiana College and its president, Rick Brewer, accusing them of violating his civil rights.    
     OK, naturally, the Jewish part -- and the charge of discrimination -- drew my attention, and it is why someone directed the story to me. I had not previously seen it.
     But let's be real clear right here: I do not know the story is true, and neither do you. Only those involved know for sure -- and it might take a court case to determine it.
     So I am not being critical. I was distributing the news ... and not anticipating the feedback.
     By the time I got home from yoga/stretching class at noon, there were 14 e-mail responses, one text, and 11 Facebook comments. As I write this, it is up to 24 e-mails and 17 Facebook comments. But who's counting?
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     Let's review. What I sent was topped by my personal note ...
     "If this story, and the lawsuit, are valid, it is a sad commentary on a college that through the years has had much respect. Bea attended Louisiana College; I have had friends who were students there, and coaches. Longtime former basketball/baseball coach and athletic director Billy Allgood was tough but much respected and successful. So this is hard to digest."
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       From the story: Bonadona, 28, applied for a job as defensive backs coach and said he was interviewed last May by Brewer and head football coach Justin Charles. Later, Charles reportedly told Bonadona that he had recommended him for the job, but the college didn't approve his hiring because of his "Jewish descent," the suit alleges. 
     "Mr. Bonadona asked Justin Charles what that meant, and Justin Charles stated that Dr. Brewer refused to approve Mr. Bonadona's hiring because of what Dr. Brewer called Mr. Bonadona's "Jewish blood," the suit says.
     A couple of facts:
     -- Bonadona, from Baton Rouge, was a kicker on LC's team, graduated from the college and was an assistant coach there in 2014. He moved to another school, but was attempting to return because he was told LC would rehire him. He ended up taking a lesser-paying coaching job.
     -- He was born into a Jewish family -- his mother is Jewish -- and he converted to Christianity while at LC.
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     Now about the responses ... because there were so many, I have compiled them in a separate take (sent with this one).
     Heard from many, many old friends, many of them in or from Louisiana, some Jewish, most not Jewish, many critical of LC and the college president, some defensive, some harsh, some mild, some explanatory.
     Going to post three separate responses here, two from old friends who live in Alexandria (next to Pineville) and offer a defense for LC president Brewer, and one from an old devout Baptist friend from Shreveport and Louisiana Tech who lives in Ruston.
     From Bob Tompkins, retired Alexandria Town Talk sports editor/columnist: "I have no 'insider' information on this despite my locale. The truth is the young man was not hired.
     "The school president, who is widely regarded locally as a good, sensible, compassionate man, has refuted the notion that the former LC kicker was not hired for the reason he says he was told by the coach. Many of us locals believe him. He has shown no trace of being capable of making such a decision."   
     From Dr. Stephen Katz, Alexandria resident, anesthesiologist: "I agree that this story was very disturbing. Appears from reliable sources here to have no merit and represents ill feelings from an individual who did not get a job.
     "PS, it is interesting that due to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Jews in the U.S. are considered to be a race in order to prevent discrimination." 
     From Glenn Theis, in Ruston: "My father graduated from Louisiana College and he worked at Guaranty Bank in Pineville the first seven years of my life. I spent a lot of time on that campus and later in high school playing in the state church league championships in basketball. I used to like that school a lot.
      "I take the Baptist Message (the Louisiana Baptist Convention newspaper) and have been really disappointed in the direction the school has taken in recent years.
      "I agree that this is a totally wrong path for the school to take. He [the coach] appeared to be an excellent choice for Louisiana College.
      "It shows that there are people who have wrong ideas and motives in every part of our country. ... Here's hoping we can try to unite rather than argue, call names and fight. It will take some compromise on both sides, but it will be better than where we are now."

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      I appreciate that people care so much. Don't care for the anger, but it is a hot-button issue.
      Discrimination of any sort bugs me, and particularly so if it is Jewish-related (think you understand).
      I am not -- not -- saying that LC president Brewer is guilty here. But as the last paragraph of the Feb. 22 AP wire story indicates and as I have been told by what I consider good sources, he can be difficult and has angered people on and off campus. 
      I don't have ties to LC -- other than my wife's couple of years five decades ago. But the response to my post shows that this lawsuit is an interesting topic to discuss.
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     A link to the responses: 
http://nvanthyn.blogspot.com/2018/03/the-responses-and-opinions-pour-in-on.html