Brother Jim

James Gilles (born 1962), better known as Jim Gilles or more commonly Brother Jim, is an American evangelist whose ministry is concentrated on college campuses and outdoor events. He has preached on over 335 college and University campuses in 49 states and 6 countries. He has been engaged in several civil rights lawsuits challenging university attempts to stop or limit his preaching.

Lawsuits and rallies

Gilles underwent an epiphany after attending a Van Halen concert[1] and started preaching around Evansville. Gilles began preaching full-time in 1982 and leads "The Campus Ministry."[2] His fundamentalist Christian views frequently include attacks on women, minorities, and the LGBT community;[3] Gilles has been arrested more than 40 times since 1986 for various charges including trespassing.[2]

In 2002 Gilles challenged Miami University, which had banned him from campus under a policy requiring all speakers to first get a permit. The case was dismissed by a district court, then reinstated and remanded on appeal on the grounds that the district court should have investigated the fairness of the policy.[4]

In 2004 Gilles filed a federal lawsuit challenging Xavier University.[5]

He had also sued Vincennes University to be allowed to speak in front of the library.[1] In 2007 Gilles and the Alliance Defense Fund appealed the Circuit Court Ruling to the US Supreme Court but were denied certiorari.[6]

In 2006, Gilles filed a federal lawsuit against Murray State University, alleging that Murray State deprived him of his rights to free speech when he was told that he would have to stop preaching until he secured sponsorship from a campus organization.[7][8] Gilles contended that he had frequented Murray State since the 1980s and never before required a sponsor. Gilles lost the lawsuit when the court ruled Murray State's speech policy requiring speakers to obtain on-campus sponsors is legal.[9] However, he reached a settlement to be allowed to speak on the Murray State campus in November 2007.[10]

In August 2016 Gilles and five others went to Cleveland, Ohio for the 2016 GOP convention.[11]

In November 2016 Gilles threatened to sue the University of Oklahoma after being asked to leave the campus following a rally against him.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 Posner, Richard A. (7 October 2013). Reflections on Judging. Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674184657 – via Google Books.
  2. 1 2 Weber, Rhiannon (11 Dec 2003). "Article from The Tech Talk, student newspaper at Louisiana Tech".
  3. 1 2 Hermes, Grant. "OU Students Rally Against Protester". Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  4. ↑ "Miami U. Challenges Federal Court Decision". CBS News. 14 August 2008. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  5. ↑ Horn, Dan. "Street preacher sues XU over speech". www.enquirer.com. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  6. ↑ "Preacher Appeals to High Court Over College Access Restrictions". WIBC. 6 June 2007. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  7. ↑ "ADF files suit on behalf of Christian barred from exercising religious expression at Murray State". Archived from the original on 16 June 2007.
  8. ↑ "Western Kentucky evangelist files free speech lawsuit against MSU". Archived from the original on 14 Aug 2013.
  9. ↑ Farrell, Elizabeth F. "Court Rules Against Campus Preacher in Free-Speech Lawsuit". The Chronicle of Higher Education.
  10. ↑ "Murray State U. and Preacher Settle Lawsuit". The Chronicle of Higher Education. 24 Dec 2007. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  11. ↑ Gardner, Sarah (20 July 2016). "'Brother Jim' of campus fame makes appearance at GOP convention". Athens News. Retrieved 2 April 2018.


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