We at the Freedom From Religion Foundation continue to impart lessons on the U.S. Constitution to public officials.
Just yesterday, we demanded that an unconstitutional Ten Commandments display be removed from an Illinois county courthouse. The display is nearly 6-and-a-half feet tall and sits in the center of the first floor lobby. “It should be obvious to anyone that the First Commandment alone — ‘Thou shalt have no other gods before me’ — is the antithesis of our First Amendment, which, by the way, is one of the principles that truly makes America great,” says FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor.
Prayers can’t conclude official gatherings
But our work didn’t stop there. On the same day, we urged a Tennessee elementary school not to allow prayer at the end of official gatherings. “Government officials may not deliver an official, sectarian prayer to a captive audience,” FFRF Legal Fellow Hirsh Joshi wrote to the schools director.
We had baccalaureate ceremonies halted
Thankfully, officials sometimes listen to us and correct their unconstitutional ways. For instance, we recently made certain that Tennessee’s Cocke County School District will no longer unconstitutionally organize baccalaureate ceremonies, which included prayer and worship. The legal counsel for the school district recently responded: “CCSS does plan to pay particular attention to instruct their employees to not be overly assertive with regard to their religious beliefs when acting in their official capacity as a government employee.” Great!
Ex-Fox News regular gets mad at us
As often, Christian nationalist troll commentator (and erstwhile Fox News regular) Todd Starnes noticed our victory and worked himself into indignation over it. Get a life, Todd.
Our $35,000 in scholarships to college students
Our $35,000 First in the Family Humanist Forward Freethought scholarships were recently awarded to students selected by Black Skeptics Los Angeles, an African American humanist-atheist-based organization that specifically addresses college pipelining for youth of color through its ongoing scholarship and college and K-12 youth leadership partnerships. Read excerpts from the well-written essays here.
A conversation with a secular state senator
Among the multimedia offerings we have for you this week, the hosts of the “We Dissent” podcast speak on the latest episode with secular Wisconsin state Sen. Kelda Roys. FFRF Deputy Legal Director Liz Cavell, Americans United Legal Director Rebecca Markert and American Atheists Vice President for Legal and Policy Alison Gill engage in a wide-ranging conversation with Roys, discussing what it’s like for her to be a nonreligious lawmaker — as well as the threat of Christian nationalism. Listen to it here.
Secularism and Hindu nationalism in India
I just returned from visiting family in India, and so as substitute host of Freethought Radio, I focused on the state of secularism and Hindu nationalism in the world’s largest secular democracy. I interviewed two guests: activist Shabnam Hashmi, who gave an on-the-ground report from India, and Professor Barry A. Kosmin from here in the United States providing background expertise. They had fascinating observations to make.
FFRF deputy legal director to speak at Kentucky gathering
Do you need a reason to visit Kentucky? Well, look no further! The Kentucky Freethought Convention is taking place there in a few days. FFRF Deputy Legal Director Liz Cavell will be speaking at the gathering on Saturday, Sept. 7, about the current state of the U.S. Supreme Court. For tickets and more details, click here.
‘Secularist’ and ‘theocrat’ of the week
FFRF Action Fund, our legislative arm, has chosen contrasting figures for its “secularist” and “theocrat” of the week. An out-of-state petitioner (its “theocrat”) is trying to present a measure to South Dakota voters in 2026 requiring teachers to lead their students in a nondenominational prayer every school morning. In more positive news, U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo., appeared on a panel during the Democratic National Convention to discuss and denounce Christian nationalism, earning him the “secularist” moniker.
Tales from Phil Donahue’s show
Pioneering television talk show host Phil Donahue recently died, and Annie Laurie has truly delicious tales to tell from when her mother, FFRF principal co-founder Anne Nicol Gaylor, and she appeared on his show. The appearance of the former was a bit of a disaster made up, sort of, when Annie Laurie was interviewed by him a few years afterward. (Coincidentally, I’ll name-drop that I drove Donahue around when he visited Madison, Wis., some years ago.) Read on.
A Hindu sect’s possibly gift to Christian groups
FFRF Legal Fellow Hirsh Joshi has a fascinating blog about a Hindu sect that may gift right-wing Christian organizations further immunity from the law.
“Usually, Christians claim that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act permits them to avoid complying with neutral and generally applicable laws,” Hirsh writes. “There is no known boundary as to the type of federal law that RFRA can be used to earn an exemption. Now, a New Jersey case may test RFRA’s application to federal labor trafficking laws, wage-and-hour laws, anti-discrimination laws and racketeering charges — but the twist is that it involves a non-Christian religious formation.”
Whether it is the U.S. Constitution or laws that privilege religion, it is our job to scrutinize and interpret these correctly — and it’s all made possible thanks to your unwavering support.
