Advocacy
Interfaith Alliance and 130+ Partner Orgs Urge the Senate to Support Reproductive Freedom by Passing WHPA
On February 25, 2022, Interfaith Alliance joined over 130 faith-based and civil rights organizations in calling on the Senate to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) into law. The House passed WHPA on September 24, 2021, moving one step closer to instituting a nationwide safeguard against medically unnecessary abortion bans and restrictions.
For nearly three decades, Interfaith Alliance has led the fight for an inclusive vision of religious freedom that protects people of all faiths and none. Our commitment to this basic right demands that we speak out against threats to religious freedom, no matter the circumstance. Since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, states have enacted over 1,300 abortion restrictions, including more than 100 in 2021 alone. And this spring the Supreme Court will render a decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, directly challenging the constitutional right to decide whether and when to terminate a pregnancy as a matter of privacy.
Various religious traditions approach matters of healthcare differently and people of all faiths and none seek comprehensive reproductive services, including abortion, every year. Rather than face onerous barriers due to their economic status, employment status, or zip code, the Women’s Health Protection Act would ensure that each person can make decisions about abortion led by their own circumstances, faith, or beliefs. It would also protect the religious freedom of individual health care providers seeking to administer quality care to their patients and enable providers to deliver abortion services free from burdensome restrictions designed to impede access rather than improve patient health.
Across tradition and practice “we believe in compassion, justice, and dignity for all,” write the signers, “compelling us to speak out for social justice and the right of every person to access comprehensive, affordable, and equitable reproductive health care.” Read the full letter.
Reproductive freedom is a matter of religious freedom. Learn more about our commitment to ensuring that every person can make healthcare decisions consistent with their own beliefs and needs.
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Department of Education Gets Patriotism Wrong
Interfaith Alliance, together with major religious organizations committed to religious freedom and education, has submitted a formal comment to the U.S. Department of Education opposing the proposed priority and definitions on promoting patriotic education.
Moral Courage in Action: Faith Communities Confront Executive Overreach
This June, the Trump administration deployed the National Guard to California following widespread protests against a series of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids across the city; protesters stood in solidarity with immigrant communities and voiced opposition to mass deportation. Executive overreach under the guise of making communities “safer” threatens the freedom and safety of protesters and distorts democratic norms. In August, the administration further displayed overreach by deploying National Guard troops and quelling protests in Washington, D.C. In September, the administration announced that Portland, Oregon, would be the next city to have troops mobilized in its community. In response, faith communities, along with their partners, have not relented and are pushing back in defense of immigrant rights and the integrity of our democracy.