A trans woman who was dismissed from her position at Liberty University last year is now speaking out about her recent lawsuit against the institution, alleging that her termination was due to her gender identity.
Ellenor Zinski joined Liberty University in 2023, working in its IT Helpdesk. According to the lawsuit, her performance was rated as above average within a few months, and a supervisor indicated that she was “on the path to success.”
Zinski told ABC News that she chose not to openly discuss her identity at work. Raised in the Christian faith aligned with Liberty University’s beliefs, she was cautious about revealing her true self in the workplace.
“There were conversations in the office that affected me, and although I couldn’t speak up, I did manage to make a few friends,” Zinski explained. “I felt comfortable coming out to some colleagues privately, but publicly, I focused solely on my job and avoided discussing my identity.”
Despite her awareness of potential challenges working at Liberty University, Zinski, a Christian, hoped that “God’s love and acceptance would prevail.”
However, this was not the case. On July 5, 2023, shortly after her performance review, Zinski emailed the university’s Human Resources department to inform them of her transgender identity, her ongoing hormone replacement therapy, and her forthcoming legal name change to Ellenor. She emphasized that these changes would not affect her job performance and did not request any accommodations.
About a month later, on August 8, 2023, Zinski was summoned to a meeting where she was terminated. The termination notice, which has not yet been publicly released or obtained by ABC News, reportedly cited her “denial of biological and chromosomal sex assigned at birth” as conflicting with the university’s Doctrinal Position, according to the ACLU. The university’s website lists the “denial of birth sex by self-identification with a different gender” as a “sinful act prohibited by God.”
“I started crying. It was devastating,” Zinski said. “Being rejected for something immutable about myself, for who I am at a fundamental level, is incredibly painful.”
Liberty University has declined to comment on legal or personnel matters.
On July 29, 2024, the ACLU of Virginia and Butler Curwood filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Zinski, alleging that her dismissal violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin.
In Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, the Supreme Court ruled that firing individuals due to their sexual orientation or transgender status violates Title VII’s prohibition of sex-based discrimination. However, the court did not address potential exemptions for religious employers.
“The key point is that being Christian is a choice I made with my heart, but being transgender is who I am,” Zinski stated. “There’s no conflict between my faith and my identity.”
Her termination comes amid a growing national wave of anti-transgender sentiment and legislation. The ACLU reports over 500 anti-LGBTQ bills introduced in 2024, many targeting issues such as preferred pronouns and names in schools and workplaces, as well as access to gender-affirming care.
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“This is an alarming time for transgender individuals in the U.S.,” said Wyatt Rolla, senior transgender rights attorney at the ACLU of Virginia. “There is an unprecedented surge of legislation in nearly half the states targeting trans people, particularly youth but increasingly adults as well. Ellenor’s termination is occurring against this backdrop of discrimination.”
