First Liberty



The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) seems to
have a problem with the First Amendment. WMATA is preventing
WallBuilders, an organization that advocates for Americans to
understand their history and the important role religion played in the
founding of our nation, from advertising on the side of WMATA Metro
buses.

In response, First Liberty, The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU
of the District of Columbia, and the law firm of Steptoe, LLP have
filed a lawsuit challenging WMATA's advertising restrictions.

The lawsuit argues that WMATA's ad guidelines violate the First
Amendment, which prohibits government agencies from discriminating
against private speech based on their viewpoint or from imposing rules
that aren't applied consistently.

When WallBuilders sought to place ads on the sides of the Metro buses,
WMATA rejected the ads on the grounds that they violated its
advertising guidelines, which prohibit advertising "intended to
influence members of the public regarding an issue on which there are
varying public opinions." It is also apparent that
WallBuilders' ads violated the guidelines' prohibition on
advertisements "that promote or oppose any religion, religious
practice or belief."

Yet, WMATA has consistently allowed ads about controversial issues
like demanding Supreme Court term limits and demanding
transparency in hospital prices. WMATA has also accepted ads with
religious content, such as an ad for The Book of Mormon musical, which
harshly lampoons the Mormon Church and religion in general.

"Rejecting a faith-based advertising banner by labeling it an
'issue ad,' while accepting other ads such as those
promoting a 'Social Justice School,' 'Earth
Day,' and the highly controversial idea of terms limits for
Supreme Court Justices, is clearly hypocritical, discriminatory, and
illegal, said First Liberty Senior Counsel Jeremy Dys. "WMATA
must support the freedoms provided in the First Amendment rather than
silence Americans through censorship."

The lawsuit asks the court to declare the WMATA guidelines prohibiting
"issue ads" and ads with religious content
unconstitutional. Additionally, it asks the court to order WMATA to
accept and run the WallBuilders advertisements it had rejected and
others that would violate these guidelines.

"The case against WMATA is a critical reminder of what's
at stake when government entities exercise selective censorship. The
First Amendment doesn't play favorites; it ensures that all
voices, regardless of their message, have the right to be
heard," said Arthur Spitzer, Senior Counsel at the ACLU-D.C.

Right now, you have an incredible opportunity to stand with First
Liberty in the fight to protect our First Amendment rights to live,
work and in this case, advertise according to our faith.

When you give to First Liberty before midnight on December 31st, our
$600,000 Matching Grant will double the impact of your gift and give
us the resources we need to stop government agencies from blatantly
discriminating against faith-based messages.

Will you join us on the frontlines in this fight and by saying NO to
these hypocritical policies?

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