Religion Clause

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

AU Complains To IRS About Church's Endorsement of Gubernatorial Candidate

Americans United announced yesterday that it has asked the Internal Revenue Service to investigate whether Richmond, Virginia's Fifth Street Baptist Church violated tax rules relating to non-profits by endorsing a gubernatorial candidate. AU wrote the IRS (full text of letter) calling its attention to a Washington Post article indicating that the church's pastor allowed candidate Brian Moran to speak during church services on June 7, just before the primary election. Some 50 parishioners were in attendance. Rev. F. Todd Gray told the congregation that Moran had the right policy on guns, affirmative action, taxes and jobs. He then added: "I'm not telling you who to vote for. I'm just telling you who I'm voting for. I'm voting for Brian Moran." The candidate was apparently invited to the church by one of its members, Evelyn Morris-Harris, chairwoman of the Democratic Black Caucus of Virginia.

10th Circuit Holds 10 Commandments Monument Violates Establishment Clause

In Green v. Haskell County Board of Commissioners, (10th Cir., June 8, 2009), the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals held that a display of a Ten Commandments monument on the lawn of the county courthouse in Stigler, Oklahoma, violated the Establishment Clause. It concluded that the particular history of this monument-- including the religious motivation of its backers-- meant that a reasonable observer would view the Monument as having the impermissible primary effect of endorsing religion. AP yesterday reported on the decision.

UCLA Changes Policy To Allow Student Reference To Jesus In Graduation Statement

Once again, the unclear line between student speech and government-endorsed speech at graduation exercises has created a high-profile controversy. Tradition at the UCLA Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology calls for each student to submit a short message ("words of wisdom") that are then read from stage at commencement by a member of the University Administration. Saturday's Christian Post reported that graduating student Christina Popa was told by her faculty advisor that a reference in Popa's statement to "my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" would be read as "God" during commencement ceremonies, to avoid making some of the diverse audience uncomfortable. Popa objected and began a campaign on Facebook to get the decision reversed. Also former Navy Chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt, who had been involved in his own dispute of offering sectarian prayers at public ceremonies, issued a press release and created an online petition supporting Popa. On Friday, UCLA reversed its decision, instead deciding that it would take steps to make clear to the commencement audience that the "words of wisdom" are the personal statements of each student.

DOJ Sues New Jersey County Over Religious Employment Discrimination

The U.S. Department of Justice announced yesterday that it has filed a Title VII religious discrimination lawsuit against Essex County, New Jersey. The complaint alleges that the county refused to permit corrections officer Yvette Beshier to wear a religiously mandated headscarf during work. The complaint asks a New Jersey federal district court to order the county to pay damages and to adopt a policy to reasonably accommodate the religious practices of employees and prospective employees subject to the Correction Department's uniform policy for officers.

Monday, June 08, 2009

Cert. Denied In Navajo Nation RFRA Case

The U.S. Supreme Court today denied certiorari in Navajo Nation v. Forest Service, (Docket No. 08-846). (Order List.) The 9th Circuit in the case held in an 8-3 en banc decision, that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act does not bar the Forest Service from approving the use of recycled waste water to make artificial snow at Arizona's Snowbowl ski resort, which operates on federal land. (See prior posting.)

Jewish Group Solicits Questions To Supreme Court Nominee

Reform Judaism's Religious Action Center has put up a web page titles "Ask Judge Sotomayor." It invites site visitors to submit questions they would like to see the Senate Judiciary Committee ask Sotomayor during her confirmation hearings. RAC says it will share questions submitted with Senators.

Report Says Israel Tax Official Seizes Catholic Church Funds For Taxes

Asia News this morning reports that in Israel, The Finance Ministry's Chief Tax Collector, Yehezkel Abrahamoff, has notified institutions of the Catholic Church in the country that he has seized their funds to force them to pay taxes he believes are due. This action short-circuits negotiations that have been going on for ten-years by the Israel-Holy See Permanent Bilateral Commission to work out the Catholic Church's tax status. (See prior posting.)

Israel's High Court Hears Challenges To Army Alternatives For Religious Students

Jerusalem Post reports that yesterday a 9-judge panel of Israel's High Court of Justice heard arguments challenging the "Tal" law. The law allows Orthodox Jewish students in yeshivot an alternative to the usual required military service. They serve only one year of military service or alternative public service and then enter the work force without being drafted. The law was intended to give an opportunity for some full-time ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students who have draft exemptions to leave their full time religious studies. The five petitions before the court essentially challenge as a denial of equality in the special draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox students. In 2006 the High Court rejected similar challenges, expressing concern but saying that there should be a resolution through the political process. However it threatened to act in the future if this did not happen. (See prior posting.) Instead of any changes, in 2007, the Tal law, that had originally been enacted for only a 5-year period, was reauthorized by the Knesset for another 5 years. [Thanks to Religion & State in Israel (Joel Katz) for the lead.]

New Repressive Religion Law Takes Effect In Azerbaijan

Forum 18 reported last week that in Azerbaijan, a repressive new religion law, along with related amendments to the Criminal Code and Administrative Code came into effect on May 31. All religious organizations are required to re-register by January 1, 2010. The amendments create a new offense of producing, importing or selling religious literature without specific permission of the Committee for Work with Religious Organizations. Also it will be illegal to conduct religious activities away from a group's registered address. Also included in the new law is language that may be seen as banning conscientious objection and language creating a lengthy list of reasons for banning a religious organization.

Sunday, June 07, 2009

Swiss Senate Urges Defeat of Ban on Minarets

In Switzerland last Friday, the country's Senate voted 36-3 to recommend that voters defeat an initiative to ban minarets. Swissinfo says most Senators believe the ban would damage the Switzerland's international reputation and the country's trade relations with Muslim countries. The right wing Swiss Peoples Party got enough signatures on a petition to force a vote on the proposal later this year.

Federal Suit On California's Textbook Portrayal of Hindus Settled

Last week, a federal district court in California entered an order settling a lawsuit that had been brought by a group of Hindu parents and their supporters challenging the way Hinduism was portrayed in textbooks chosen by the California state Board of Education in 2005-06. In a prior decision, the court dismissed all plaintiffs' claims except for its equal protection challenge to the textbook adoption process. A parallel state court case has already led to the state Board revising its book selection procedures. Now, according to today's Sacramento Bee, the federal lawsuit has been settled by the state paying plaintiffs $250,000 to CAPEEM (the plaintiff group), an amount that probably will not even cover their expenses. Today's Sacramento Bee reported on developments.

Bosnian Election Restrictions Challenged In European Court As Discriminatory

Last week, the European Court of Human Rights heard arguments in the case of Sejdić and Finci v. Bosnia and Herzegovina challenging provisions in Bosnia's constitution and the election act of 2001. (Court press release.) Haaretz also reports on the case brought by the head of Bosnia's Jewish community and the head of its Roma Council are challenging restrictions that limit candidates for the Presidency and the House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly to members of the Bosnian Serb, Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat communities. They argue that the restrictions violate Articles 3 (inhuman and degrading treatment), 13 (right to an effective remedy) and 14 (prohibition of discrimination) of the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention (right to free elections) and Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 to the Convention (general prohibition of discrimination).

Friday, June 05, 2009

Obama Speaks To Middle East Reporters About Religious Pluralism

After his speech in Cairo yesterday, President Obama met with Middle East reporters. JTA has a transcript of the session. While much of the Q&A focused on the Israeli-Palestinian question, one exchange allowed the President to expand on his notion of a religiously pluralistic society:

What I tried to communicate in the speech ... is that in an interdependent world like ours ... we have to have a mature faith that says "I believe with all my heart and all my soul in what I believe, but I respect the fact that somebody else believes their beliefs just as strongly." ... I can't force my religion on you.... Now, that doesn't mean that I can't make arguments that are based on my belief and my faith... If I'm a politician and I say I'm going to pass a law against murdering somebody, that's not me practicing my religious faith; that's me practicing morality that may be based in religious faith, but ... one that can translate into a principle that people of various faiths can agree on.
I think it's very important for Islam to wrestle with these issues.... [I]n Islam there's a debate about sharia and how strict an interpretation or how moderate an interpretation of that should be; or should that be something that is not part of the secular law. I don't presume to make that decision for any country or any groups of people. But I do think that if you start having rules that guarantee other faiths and other groups, or in the case of the United States, people with no faith at all, are somehow forced to abide by somebody else's faith, I think that is a violation of the spirit of democracy and I think that over the long term, that's going to breed conflict in some way. It will lead to some sort of instability and destructiveness in that society.
But, as I said, I think this is a important debate that has to take place inside Islam.... [T]he one thing I can say for certain is that people who justify killing other people based on faith are misreading their sacred texts. And I think they are out of alignment with God. Now, that's my belief. [T]hat ... is a debate that I think is settled for the vast majority of Muslims, but we have a very small minority that can be very destructive....

President's Faith-Based Council Holds Its First Official Meeting

Yesterday afternoon, President Obama's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships held its first official meeting by conference call. Washington Post's On Faith has an account of what transpired. Each of the Task Forces reported on its activities. Originally it was reported that the White House had created six task forces (see prior posting); however yesterday's report suggests that a seventh has appeared: Reducing Teen Pregnancy and Abortion. The Council's timeline for the next few months is: Phone conferences every month with an in-person meeting , open to the public, in July. At that meeting, each task force will identify 2 to 3 areas for primary focus. In October, each task force will present a draft of recommendations, with a February meeting to release a final report and recommendations. In between,frequent phone conferences among task forces are anticipated.

Today, Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Civil and Political Rights today issued a press release focusing on part of the report by the Task Force on Global Poverty and Development. The Task Force identified as an issue the importance of foreign aid going to civil society institutions, such as churches, mosques, temples and universities, as well as to governments. Donohue says: "This is a commendable proposition, but it also smacks of hypocrisy: U.S. taxpayers are expected to foot the bill for religious institutions overseas but there is no money for poor kids down the block from the White House who would like to have a school voucher to attend a Catholic school. "

Brooklyn Bishop Lobbies Hard Against Statute of Limitations Window

Today's New York Times reports on the aggressive political advocacy by Brooklyn's Bishop Nicholas A. DiMarzio in opposition to a bill proposed in the legislature that would create a one-year window in which anyone could sue for child abuse, no matter how long ago it occurred. The provision is in one of the two versions of bills tht would extend the statute of limitations on child abuse from 5 years to 10 years. Bishop DiMarzio warns that if the one-year window is enacted, it will bankrupt various Catholic dioceses, and that parishioners will in turn reject politicians who supported the bill.

Some charge that Bishop DiMarzio entered a political deal with Assemblyman Vito J. Lopez, forcing Father James O'Shea to resign as executive director of Churches United. That group had questioned the lack of transparency in the planning process for a large urban renewal housing project in Williamsburg. Lopez headed the Assembly's housing committee that helped get funding for the project, and he also founded a nonprofit social services organization that has part of the contracts for preliminary project development work. Critics say that in exchange for the removal of Fr. O'Shea, Assemblyman Lopez introduced the competing bill that lengthened the statute of limitations in abuse cases without providing a one-time window for old claims to be asserted. Lopez denies any such deal.

Bahrain Adopts New Family Law For Sunnis; Excludes Shiites

IPS reports today that Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on May 27 approved a new family law for Sunnis that protects the rights of women in Shariah courts. The new law sets out specific guidelines for courts to apply to marriage and divorce, alimony, child custody and inheritance cases. This is intended to lessen the mistreatment of women resulting from giving excessive discretion to male judges. However Shiites were excluded from coverage under the law after conservative Shiite scholars and lawmakers threatened nationwide protests and rallies. A spokesman for the Shiite bloc in Parliament said the law clashed with Shariah principles. Fundamentalist Shiites also fear that the law could be a first step toward applying secular civil law to Bahraini Muslims

Maryland AG Says Court Security Can Require Temporary Removal of Face Coverings

A Maryland Attorney General's ruling handed down last week says that deputy sheriffs assigned to court security may require a person to temporarily remove a face covering, or veil or for identification or security purposes, even if the item is worn for religious purposes. 94 OAG 81 (May 27, 2009) concludes that there are no constitutional problems with doing this so long as the sheriff's office has a neutral and generally applicable policy of requiring removal of face coverings for security purposes. The opinion goes on, however, to urge practices that minimize religious conflicts:

To minimize potential conflicts between the requirements of courthouse security and the religious practices of individuals entering the courthouse, it would be useful if security details were comprised of both male and female officers and if a private space were available at the entrance of the courthouse for those individuals whose religion discourages removal of a head covering in public.

While the opinion is focused primarily on issues of Muslim women wearing a niqab, portions of the opinion indicate that it applies to other kinds of head coverings worn by men as well. Today's Examiner reports on Attorney General Douglas Gansler's opinion and the ACLU's concern about its impact on other head coverings.

Court Refuses To Dismiss Challenge To Illinois Drivers License Rules

In Baer v. White, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 46412 (ND IL, June 3, 2009), plaintiffs challenged as too narrow the Illinois provisions protecting some religious objectors from furnishing their social security number in order to get a drivers' license. Under Illinois Vehicle Code 6-106 and 92 Illinois Administrative Code §1063.63, an exemption is available only if the religious order or sect to which an applicant belongs does not permit the individual to apply for a social security card. In this case, plaintiffs say that their individual religious beliefs-- based on Revelation 13:16-17 that prohibits the "mark of the beast"-- prevent them from furnishing a social security number in order to obtain a drivers license. However their religious sect does not specifically prohibit obtaining a social security number; instead it respects individual consciences on the matter. At issue in particular is the state's requirement for a statement from one's religious leader "attesting that the use of a social security number is against the religious convictions of the applicant's faith." The statute also requires the Secretary of State to determine which religious groups have bona fide convictions opposing participation in the social security system.

The court refused to dismiss plaintiffs' free exercise, equal protection and state RFRA challenges to the statute and regulations. However the court did dismiss plaintiffs' right to travel and due process challenges to the Illinois requirements.

Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases

In Heleva v. Kramer, (3d Cir., May 22, 2009), the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of appeals rejected a free exercise and RLUIPA claim by an inmate who alleged that for eight months authorities deprived him of two books on spirituality and prayer sent by his sister.

Moriarty v. Rendell, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 44100 (MD PA, May 26, 2009), involves an inmate's claim that he was required to attend a religious-based 12-step drug and alcohol treatment program as a condition of parole. In this decision, a Pennsylvania federal district court adopted a magistrate's report and dismissed certain 1st, 8th and 14th Amendment claims relating to the required attendance.

In Colon v. Passaic County, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 45151 (D NJ, May 27, 2009), a New Jersey federal district court certified all persons who are or will become incarcerated at the Passaic County Jail during the pendency of the lawsuit as the appropriate class to bring a number of claims, including alleged restriction on religious freedom.

In Rouser v. White, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 45171 (ED CA, May 15, 2009), a California federal district court, in a lengthy opinion, allowed plaintiffs to move forward on many of their RLUIPA, free exercise clause, establishment clause and equal protection challenges to a prison's restrictions on various Wiccan religious practices.