Physician assistant fired for refusing to use trans pronouns

TUPELO, Miss. — Valerie Kloosterman, a physician assistant from Michigan, was wrongfully fired from her position after asking for “religious accommodation in order to not be forced to use patients’ preferred pronouns or refer patients for transgender surgical procedures and drugs.” A lawsuit was filed against the University of Michigan Health-West, stating that Kloosterman’s First and Fourteenth Amendment rights were violated when she was terminated from her job. Over three years later, oral arguments for her case were finally heard before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on February 6.

“No one should lose their job for holding a religious conviction or refusing to deny biological reality,” says Walker Wildmon, CEO of AFA Action, the governmental affairs affiliate of the American Family Association. “Valerie Kloosterman stood for truth, refusing to bow to harmful gender ideology, and for that, she was fired. This isn’t just about one case — it’s about a dangerous ideology permeating America’s highest institutions. This radical sexual identity ideology teaches that there is no absolute truth — specifically in the realm of human sexuality. As a result of this blatant denial of the human male and female experience, thousands of minors and adults have had their bodies mutilated across America. This horror must end. It ends by first allowing physicians to speak freely on this topic. This is why Kloosterman’s story is important.”

AFA Action is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to advancing biblical family values in society and government by shaping public policy through education and advocacy. The mission of AFA Action is to inform and mobilize individuals to strengthen the biblical foundations of America by persuading individuals with the truth of the Gospel, challenging the lost to repent, promoting societal values that are consistent with Scripture, restraining evil and exposing the works of darkness, motivating people to take a stand on cultural and moral issues, and encouraging Christians to bear witness to the world the love of Jesus Christ. Find AFA Action Alerts here. 

For more information on the American Family Association, visit www.afa.net or follow AFA on Facebook or X.        

For more information on AFA Action, visit www.afaaction.net or follow AFA Action on Facebook or X.

To interview an AFA or AFA Action spokesperson, contact [email protected] or Beth Bogucki, 610.584.1096, ext. 105, Dawn Foglein, ext. 100, or Daniel Moyer, ext. 104.