Trades Union Congress Calls for Christian to Be Sacked from Equality and Human Right Commission

Country: United Kingdom

Date of incident: September 10, 2008


The Trades Union Congress (TUC), a federation of trade unions in the United Kingdom, has issued a call for the removal of a Christian Equality and Human Rights Commissioner. Joel Edwards is the director of the Evangelical Alliance and a figure loathed by homosexualist activists for his forthright calls for a re-insertion of Christian morals in public life and defence of the rights of Christians who oppose the homosexualist political agenda.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission was established by the Equality Act 2006, bringing together the three existing UK equality commissions - the Commission for Racial Equality, the Equal Opportunities Commission and the Disability Rights Commission. During this process of rationalisation, the Government placed three new strands of human rights under the aegis of the EHRC - age, sexual orientation and religious belief. Dr. Joel Edwards is one of 14 appointed members, chosen for having "exceptional experience in the field of equality and human rights." The Commission is charged with investigating the "root causes of inequality in our society." At its annual congress in Brighton, the Trades Union Congress TUC voted unanimously to demand that the government remove Joel Edwards, the director of the Evangelical Alliance, from the Commission. Although there is no formal link between the TUC and the Labour party, the major TUC affiliated unions make up the great bulk of the Labour Party affiliated membership. Edwards' presence on the Equality Commission has long enraged homosexualist activists who vowed in January this year to launch a campaign to have him removed. In a ten-page dossier published on its website, the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement demanded the removal of Edwards, the only Christian on the Commission. The Evangelical Alliance, to which Edward belongs, has been vocal in its opposition to the increasing efforts of secularists to force Christians out of the public sphere. In a newsletter published by the Evangelical Alliance in 2006, Edwards wrote that the imposition of civil partnerships for homosexuals is "part of a global campaign to impose a homosexual equality agenda on society." The Alliance was a leading light in the efforts against the Sexual Orientation Regulations that have resulted in the closure of several Catholic adoption agencies. In response to a speech in early July by Conservative party leader David Cameron in which Cameron again criticised the UK's culture of "moral neutrality", Dr. Edwards said, "All the social indicators tell us that moral values are currently up for grabs in our society." "With the nation in denial about our Christian foundation and heritage, we need to decide which moral compass we will use to make a distinction between right and wrong in our lives." "The church has been working for generations at the grassroots level to support and guide people in making choices. We invite others, including our nation's politicians, to join us in considering the role of faith communities in society whilst rediscovering the biblical values essential to community cohesion which are inherent in the Judeo-Christian message." Despite the ongoing demands of homosexualist activists and their allies on the left, a Commission spokesman has defended Dr. Edwards' appointment, saying, "The Equality and Human Rights Commission is supposed to represent a wide range of views and opinions and we welcome lively debate." (Source: Hilary White, September 10, 2008, LifeSiteNews.com)