Friend:

Today marks one year since the entire staff of Americans United started working from home at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Like with many organizations, it was an unprecedented transformation. Just a few days later, we were featured in The New York Times article “Working From Home in Washington? Not So Great,” with this “Brady Bunch” picture that still makes me smile – even though it is now a typical experience for so many of us:

The year was undoubtedly rough. It included a global pandemic, a painful racial reckoning, a bruising Supreme Court confirmation battle and a fourth year of President Donald Trump’s war on church-state separation – and on democracy itself. My colleagues have had to battle everything from losing parents to homeschooling children to feeling isolated and lonely.

Nevertheless, they brought their all and then some to the many new and old challenges coming our way.

Let me share just a few highlights. In addition to organizing AU’s successful National Advocacy Summit, our Outreach team also launched our first-ever Youth Organizing Fellowship and new AU Action Network. Our Legal Department filed 47 friend-of-the court briefs (and counting) fighting dangerous religious exemptions from COVID-19 public safety orders. Our Public Policy team, amidst battling a spate of discriminatory Trump regulations, created a 10-point agenda to reclaim religious freedom that we shared with the Biden-Harris administration.

To learn more about AU’s work through the pandemic, click here to read my column “A COVID Year Chronicle: AU Is Home – But Not Alone” online.

This year has shown me that, when it comes to AU, everything is possible – even over Zoom. The commitment we have to protecting the separation of church and state is unmatched by anyone… that is, except by you. Thanks for being so loyally with us throughout this challenging year.

With hope and determination,