Friend:

This week the conservative bloc of the Supreme Court delivered another vicious blow to church-state separation, capping off a series of assaults this term that collectively amount to the greatest loss of religious freedom in a generation. In AU’s case, Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, the Court’s ultra-conservative supermajority permitted a public school football coach—an agent of the state—to pressure students to join his prayers at the 50-yard line.

Religious freedom is not the right to use your power as a public school employee to impose your beliefs on students; religious freedom is meant to be the shield that protects the rights of all students to believe as they choose. Religious freedom is supposed to belong to all of us, not just those who hold power.

Notably absent from the opinion written by Justice Gorsuch was any mention of the religious freedom that was actually in jeopardy: that of every student and family, not just in Bremerton but in public schools across the country. The Court was not concerned for the nonreligious or non-Christian students who are made to feel like outsiders when they don’t join their coach’s prayers. Or the Christian students who don’t pray the same way as their coach. The court was not concerned about the students who feel like they have to pray to play.

Our Supreme Court, our constitutional system, the rule of law—they are at their best when defending the vulnerable. When defending children against adults abusing the power of a government position. AU was fighting for those children. The Bremerton School District was protecting those children. The Supreme Court utterly failed them. And in doing so, the conservative justices ignored the religious freedom of all, in favor of the privileged few. That is not freedom, but favoritism.

We know who was behind this case, and other cases this term that prompted the Court to abolish the constitutional right to abortion, to force taxpayers to fund private religious education, and to force a city to fly a Christian flag. These cases are part of a crusade by a billion-dollar shadow network of religious extremists and their political allies who want to force all of us to live by their beliefs. We know they’re far from finished—they are going to keep coming for more, and more, and more of our hard-won progress toward our country’s ideals. None of our rights are safe.

With our dedicated supporters, Americans United has been in the fight to protect church-state separation for 75 years. Under this court, it’s the worst it’s ever been. For centuries, this founding American principle has guaranteed true religious freedom, eased political divisions and ensured a healthy, diverse democracy. It’s no coincidence that as the Supreme Court chips away at the wall of separation, our nation is more divided than ever. We are getting a real-world lesson in what it’s like to live in a country without this crucial shield.

America needs a national recommitment to the separation of church and state. We the people must resurrect this founding principle and reject the Court’s attempts to destroy it. We must rebuild the wall that separates religion and government because that is the only guarantee of true religious freedom and the best way to ensure freedom without favor and equality without exception.

Those who seek to undermine our freedom to live as ourselves and believe as we choose won’t back down. Neither will we. We cannot let this Court or the shadow network deter us—we must work together to hold back this tide of religious extremism from encroaching on everyone’s rights.

Make no mistake, after 75 years, we are in the fight of our lives. The work Americans United is doing matters more than ever before. And with your support, we will never give up. If our democracy is to survive, we must prevail.

With hope and determination,

Rachel K. Laser
President and CEO