“Neither Rain Nor Snow Nor Sleet Nor Dark Of Night” Will Keep Postal Workers From Their Appointed Rounds, But Religious Beliefs Might
As reported in the Friendly Atheist blog, a postal worker in Bremerton, Washington, is refusing to deliver mail to pot shops and an adult video store. Her excuse? Her religious beliefs.
Americans United and Allies Secure Victory in Alabama for Marriage Equality
Federal Court Was Right To Issue Permanent Injunction On Ala. Marriage-Equality Ban, Says Americans United
Birth Control Battles: The Theocrats’ Long War On Contraceptive Access
Yesterday marked the 51st anniversary of Griswold v. Connecticut, a landmark Supreme Court decision that broadened access to contraception. In a 7-2 decision, the nation’s highest court found that the Connecticut Comstock Act of 1879, which banned contraceptives, violated the Fourteenth Amendment right to privacy.
Off-Base Bishop: Catholic Leader Complains Of ‘Bloodless Persecution’
A powerful Roman Catholic official is so upset about marriage equality and the Obama administration’s efforts to include birth control access in healthcare plans that he’s decided to label them examples of “Christian persecution.”
Reason Rally Attendees Show Why They Want To Protect Their Neighbors!
Making A Martyr: How The Religious Right Is Fighting LGBT Protections In Phoenix
On May 12, the evangelical Christian co-owners of a calligraphy shop filed suit to demand a right to discriminate against LGBT couples. Joanna Duka and Breanna Koski, who are being represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), seek exemption from Phoeniz, Ariz., non-discrimination law, claiming that the law could potentially land them jail time if they turned away LGBT couples seeking hand-lettered wedding invitations. The key words here: "could" and "if". No same-sex couples have actually requested invitations from the studio yet.
Swimming Lesson: Public Pool Reinstates Religiously Motivated Sex-Segregated Hours
Arizona's Largest Women's Health Network Obstructs Abortion Access Due To Religious Beliefs
Above The Law?: Ala. Chief Jurist Demands No Accountability
Pay No Attention to Those Tens of Thousands of Women Affected by the Contraception Litigation
How the Energy and Water Funding Bill Turned into a Fight Over Religious Discrimination
On Wednesday afternoon, the House took up the Energy and Water Appropriations bill, which is just one of the dozen of bills Congress passes each year to fund the federal government. The bill, not normally thought to evoke debates over discrimination or religion, became a lightning rod for those issues by the end of the day. And the bill ultimately failed, in part, due to a troubling amendment that would have allowed taxpayer funded religious discrimination.
Mississippi Joins Multi-State Anti-LGBT Lawsuit Against The Federal Government [Updated]
Yesterday Mississippi announced that it would be joining 11 other states in their lawsuit against the Obama administration after it reminded states that federal law prohibits schools from discriminating against transgender students in public schools.
Genuine Oppression: The Religious Right Should Study China To Learn What Real Christian Persecution Looks Like
"Groundbreaking Victory" In Landmark Ruling Over Unconstitutional Public Funding Of New Jersey Religious Institutions
A New Jersey appellate court has ruled that Governor Chris Christie's administration violated the New Jersey Constitution in granting public funds to two religious institutions that discriminate on the basis of religion and sex. Americans United, together with the ACLU of New Jersey and the national ACLU, collaboratively brought the case and called this ruling a "groundbreaking victory" in a joint statement today.
Landmark Ruling Stops Unconstitutional Taxpayer Funding of N.J. Yeshiva and Seminary After ACLU And Americans United Suit
Problematic Pastor: Why Is A Controversial Texas Minister Counseling Dallas Law Enforcement?
Americans United Responds To Lawsuit Seeking Right to Discriminate Against Transgender Students
On May 13, the U.S. Departments of Justice and Education reiterated that the nation’s civil-rights laws prohibit public schools from discriminating against transgender students. Thus, transgender students must be allowed to use the restrooms and participate in the activities designated for the gender with which they identify.
Today, eleven states—Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin—filed a lawsuit in a federal court in Texas to challenge the government’s authority to protect these students’ civil rights.