Louisiana College is finding itself in hot water after Joshua Bonadona filed a lawsuit against it, alleging discrimination.
In the federal lawsuit claim, Bonadona says the president of the private Baptist college in Louisiana refused to approve the coach's hiring because of what he called the applicant's "Jewish blood."
Bonadona put this into action on Wednesday.
Rick Brewer, is the school's president. To put it bluntly, the coach is accusing them of violating his civil rights.
For some context (via ESPN):
"Bonadona says he applied for a job as defensive backs coach at his alma mater and was interviewed last May by Brewer and the Pineville school's head football coach, Justin Charles. The head coach later 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.
It, at least allegedly, gets worse.
"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.
Also alleged in the suit is the potential coach, who actually went to school at this university, was pressured to discuss his family's religious background.
While a religious school is actually allowed to hire based on a person's background in that specific area, according to the lawsuit, people of Jewish heritage are protected as a "distinct race" under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and federal law prohibits employers from failing to hire somebody on the basis of race.
Bonadona was born into a Jewish family, but converted to Christianity when he went to Louisiana College as a student-athlete.
