ACLJ FOIA Uncovers VA Doctor's Animosity Toward "Clearly Christian Books" in New Mexico Hospital Gift Store and Hospital Staff's Reversal of "Pull[ing] All the Bibles"

Remember this past spring when we told you that in the weeks leading up to Easter, an anti-Bible advocate “charged that displaying Bibles and other Christian literature alongside a display of chocolate Easter bunnies and other goodies commonly associated with Easter in a gift shop” at the VA hospital in New Mexico “has crossed the dreaded red line that separates church and state”?

We also reported that, “[u]nfortunately, within 24 hours of this anti-Christian group’s demand letter, the leadership at the Albuquerque VA Medical Center apparently caved and ordered the display of literature removed.”

We took action on multiple fronts. On March 31, 2022, we sent a legal letter to the VA hospital’s Associate Director, explaining what the law really requires.

Last month, we also sent a legal demand for records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). We just received our first set of records in response to our FOIA request. 

The records obtained by the ACLJ confirmed that the VA hospital caved to the ridiculous demand. We also confirmed that, after receiving our legal letter, they reversed course, at least in part.  But we also uncovered something at least as equally alarming:

• A VA hospital doctor, who is also the hospital’s “Mindfulness Instructor,” emailed hospital staff and thanked them for removing the “Easter Christian book display.”

• In that VA doctor’s words: “Thanks so much for your attention to the presence of Christian religious books in our VA Patriot store. I was heartened to read of the intent to remove them last month in the email string below.”

• According to the VA doctor: “Today I was in the Patriot store again and went to the book rack to check it out,” referring to the “presence of the Christian religious books in our VA Patriot Store.”  She continued, “I’m sorry to say I counted 32 clearly Christian books on the rack! Thirty two! The few others there are secular.”  The VA doctor actually counted how many Christian books were on the shelf.

• While expressing what feels like feigned respect for “all religions,” the VA doctor falsely declared “[b]ut for any one religion to be apparently promoted in a VA setting is legally and ethically out of line.

Maybe this VA doctor should read our letter.

• “I hope this can be corrected,” she stated, while going on to express how glad she is to serve  ALL veterans regardless of religious affiliation” – as if a hospital featuring Bibles in an Easter display leading up to Easter somehow interfered with the VA serving ALL veterans.

At the beginning of this email thread, an email dated March 23, 2022 – the date the VA hospital received the anti-Bible advocate’s complaint – revealed one VA staffer assuring others that:

we are going to pull any overly religious themed books moving forward per Chris Smith ( RM ). I am looking at the book rack display also now. We have pulled all Bibles. – FYI. Thanks for the heads up and support.

That thread was forwarded on to the VA doctor, who, as explained above, thanked them profusely for pulling the Bibles. Fortunately, it appears Mr. Smith reconsidered his extreme initial response and stood firm at least in one regard following up on the doctor’s anti-Bible email by instructing hospital staff, “To be clear, you are not to pull Bibles.”

But even he got it wrong from there: “The Easter display was problematic as it ‘promotes’ one religion over others.  Books in a rack does [sic] not. That is the law per the directive I sent CC’s.”

The Associate Director to whom we addressed our letter was on that email thread.

Maybe it was our letter that helped Mr. Smith land in a better spot, but maybe he should re-read it. Normal business merchandise displays that feature items particularly relevant to a holiday are nowhere near unconstitutional. It is common sense. For a government entity to refuse to market a religious book like anyone would a secular book is what violates the First Amendment.

The First Amendment does not require – or allow – hostility toward religion.

At the end of the day, we sent this FOIA request to uncover what was going on behind the scenes of this horrendous and misguided decision to pull the Easter Bible display. And this first production does just that.

Think about it. This is a hospital. People who are there are sick or injured or related to someone who is. Many people in this scenario are thinking about spirituality in a new way. Many of them are seeking spiritual comfort.

On top of that, this is a veterans hospital. These patients and their families have sacrificed for our nation in ways most of us cannot even fathom. 

Next, Easter is one of our nation’s mainstream religion’s most important holidays.

With all due respect, the VA hospital doctor is wrong. The animosity expressed toward “clearly Christian books” by a doctor at a U.S. government institution is sad and disappointing.  People need to be educated about what the law really requires.

Stand with us and help us do that. Help us protect the rights of those seeking care at our VA hospitals.

There are more documents for us to uncover with this FOIA request. In its letter to us, the VA told us they withheld 15 records in full.  If it takes litigation to uncover the rest, then that’s what we’ll do.