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Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Ruling Against Louisiana’s Ten Commandments Law is a Big Win for Religious Freedom
Interfaith Alliance, a leading advocate for healthy boundaries between religion and government, welcomed the ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that prevents Louisiana from enforcing its unconstitutional law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments. Interfaith Alliance was one of 19 religious organizations that co-signed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case.
In response to the ruling, Interfaith Alliance’s vice president of programs and strategy, Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons, shared the following comment:
“When one of the most conservative courts in the country tells the Christian nationalist right that they’ve gone too far, it’s a day we can all rejoice in a win for religious freedom. Today’s ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals sends a clear message to Louisiana lawmakers: requiring classroom Ten Commandments displays is a violation of the First Amendment and an unacceptable attempt by the government to push one specific religious display on all public school students.
Right-wing Louisiana lawmakers and those in other states considering such legislation should crack open the Constitution. It leaves no room for religious indoctrination in public schools. Our students should be free to learn without government-imposed religion. Whether or not you hold the Ten Commandments to be sacred scripture–and I do–we should all agree that the government co-opting it and robbing it of its religious significance is demeaning.”
Faith leaders across the country are leading the pushback on this egregious attack on religious freedom, in places such as Alabama, Texas, and Missouri. Guthrie and representatives from Interfaith Alliance’s 20 state and local affiliates are available for interviews to discuss the impact of this decision.
Faith That Speaks Truth to Power: Reform Rabbis Reject White Nationalism
A few weeks ago, the U.S. Reform Jewish community delivered a powerful message of moral clarity. The Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR), a leading voice in progressive Judaism, passed a bold resolution explicitly opposing white Christian nationalism and affirming its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). This action demonstrates the power of empowering and mobilizing the Jewish community to challenge the growing threats to democracy and pluralism by reclaiming and correcting the false narrative promoted by white Christian nationalist rhetoric. It also offers a vital example of how faith communities can and must speak out.
Rep. Miller’s Attack on Sikh-led Prayer in Congress is a Xenophobic Asault on Freedom of Religion for All Faiths
Interfaith Alliance, a national leader in upholding multi-faith democracy and civil rights for all Americans, is appalled by Rep. Mary Miller’s bigoted attack on a Sikh man, whom she initially misidentified as Muslim, for leading a prayer on the floor of the House of Representatives. In her now-deleted post, Rep. Miller called on Congress to uphold the supposed “truth” that ““America was founded as a Christian nation.”
Faith, Freedom, and Reproductive Rights
At the heart of our democracy is the belief that individuals should be free to make decisions guided by their own conscience, values, and beliefs, especially when it comes to their health care. The growing efforts to restrict access to reproductive health care under the guise of religious or political authority is deeply concerning and recent legal challenges across the country threaten not only access to care but also the foundational principle that no single religious tradition should determine public policy for everyone.