Friend:

“There is always light, if only we're brave enough to see it. If only we're brave enough to be it,” wrote National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman in her inaugural poem, “The Hill We Climb.” There’s no question that this has been a rough year and that we’ve faced setbacks, but I have hope. 

As I was writing my year-end reflection for this month’s Church & State magazine, I found lots of light that gives me hope for the future. I’d like to share some with you:

• The conservative bloc of the Supreme Court may have abolished the constitutional right to abortion, but they spawned a wave of enthusiastic supporters who are committed to protecting both abortion rights and religious freedom. The Court may have ruled in favor of a high school football coach who wants to lead coercive prayers with public school students on the football field, but the case allowed AU to build our network of faith leaders invested in speaking out in support of church-state separation as the key to protecting religious freedom. These aren’t just silver linings – these are the building blocks for a much-needed national recommitment to church-state separation.
• The young people who flooded the polls in the midterms are key to the future of our democracy. AU is passionate about building this next generation of leaders through programs like our brand-new Legal Academy, the Youth Organizing Fellowship and the Summit for Religious Freedom (SRF).
• Speaking of SRF, I hope you will join us in person in Washington, D.C., or virtually on April 22-24, 2023. I’m grateful that COVID-19 has eased enough that we can safely bring our community together, and that I’ve been able to get back on the road and see firsthand our members’ hunger for activism in support of our mission.

I shared several more reflections on 2022 in my column; I hope you’ll check it out. The bottom line is that, as I looked back on this year—AU’s 75th!—there is light. There is reason to hope. So I’m looking ahead with optimism and resolve concerning the future of Americans United, church-state separation and our shared quest for a country that delivers freedom without favor and equality without exception for all of us.

Here’s to another strong 75 years for Americans United!

With hope and determination,

Rachel K. Laser
President and CEO

P.S. We’ve been reviewing the past year in church-state separation on our blog for the last two weeks; you can read a sampling of the top stories below, and find even more on our website.