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January 31, 2024
Friends,
2023 was another excellent year for the cause of religious liberty. As we reflect on the year, we are grateful for our wonderful clients, Becket’s hardworking team, and your generous support and encouragement, all of which make this success possible. Here are a few of the victories we achieved together this past year:
The Ninth Circuit set some of the strongest Free Exercise precedent in the country through our win for the
Fellowship of Christian Athletes<[link removed]> (FCA). A California public school district kicked the FCA student club out after a teacher-led campaign of bullying and harassment. The Ninth Circuit’s ruling reinstated the club – overturning a longstanding bad precedent.
We finally achieved justice in our
longest-running case<[link removed]> over a Native American sacred site in Oregon which the federal government had needlessly bulldozed 15 years ago. In a landmark settlement, the government agreed to make efforts to restore the site and recognize its historic use by Native Americans.
We
won victories<[link removed]> in two cases that protect South Carolina for allowing faith-based foster agencies to serve children. Thanks to these two rulings, faith-based agencies are free to continue finding loving homes for children in South Carolina’s foster system.
We
successfully wrapped up<[link removed]> five years of litigation in three separate cases for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. All three cases ended in complete victory, affirming the freedom of religious schools to choose educators who will pass their faith on to the next generation.
We protected the
Sisters of Life<[link removed]>, who serve pregnant women by offering personal, holistic care pre- and post-birth, after New York targeted their ministry for investigation and demanded they hand over their most sensitive internal documents. In November, under court order, New York agreed to back down and leave the Sisters free to focus on their mission of helping women in need.
While we celebrate these victories, we’re not resting on our laurels. As you’ll see below, we’ve hit the ground running in 2024 to continue defending and strengthening religious freedom for all Americans.
What's happening at Becket
Support for religious freedom scores high. To celebrate Religious Freedom Day, Becket released the fifth edition of the
Religious Freedom Index<[link removed]>, the nation’s only annual poll that tracks American opinion on religious freedom. In the 2023 Index, overall support for religious freedom hit its highest score ever, and the results demonstrated strong support for parental rights, trust in people of faith, and insights into how Gen Z thinks about religious freedom.
Victory for religious speech. Earlier this month, we won at the Eleventh Circuit on behalf of
Young Israel<[link removed]>, an Orthodox Jewish synagogue in Tampa. Young Israel was barred from advertising its “Chanukah on Ice” event on public transit because the transit agency prohibited religious expression – lumping religion in with other forbidden categories such as graphic violence or adult content. The Eleventh Circuit affirmed that arbitrary bans on religious speech violate the First Amendment.
California targets a baker. In an issue that may sound familiar,
a faithful Christian<[link removed]> has run a bakery in California for over a decade. In 2017, California opened an investigation into Cathy Miller after she referred a same-sex couple to a nearby bakery because her faith did not allow her to design their wedding cake. For over six years, California has continued prosecuting Miller, claiming her action "harms the dignity of all Californians." We are
asking a state court<[link removed]> to protect her ability to operate her bakery in accordance with her faith.
Becket in the news
Administrative overreach and the Little Sisters. A current Supreme Court case about fishing regulations is really about how the administrative state affects our liberty, as the
Little Sisters of the Poor<[link removed]> know all too well.
My article<[link removed]> for National Review addresses the dangers of administrative overreach and the impact on groups like the Little Sisters.
Protecting parental rights. Becket VP and senior counsel Eric Baxter
writes about<[link removed]> our
Mahmoud v. McKnight<[link removed]> case, where parents in Maryland are fighting to restore notice and opt-out rights over a controversial gender and sexuality curriculum introduced by their public school board.
When a universal program isn’t universal. We started off the new year by
putting Colorado on trial<[link removed]>
<[link removed]>for denying Catholic preschools and families the ability to participate in the state’s Universal Preschool Program because of their faith. Becket counsel Nick Reaves discussed the case
on EWTN<[link removed]>.
What we’re reading
Didn’t get the memo. Despite many victories in court, governments are still routinely discriminating against religious people and organizations. Nicole Garnett and Tim Rosenberger of the Manhattan Institute
penned a piece<[link removed]> for the Wall Street Journal examining this problem – and the Becket cases that are trying to correct it.
Religious liberty is fundamental to diversity. The 2023 Religious Freedom Index shows that Americans are increasingly unified in supporting religious liberty for all faiths. I
wrote an op-ed<[link removed]> on how religious liberty can help build a stronger and better country even in the midst of our disagreements.
Gen Z and religious liberty. While the new Religious Freedom Index showed positive attitudes towards religion and religious liberty overall, Gen Z’s views were an outlier. Becket communications and government affairs fellow Natan Ehrenreich
takes a look<[link removed]> at Gen Z’s conflicting opinions especially in the aftermath of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
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Mark Rienzi
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