Since the election, the Freedom From Religion Foundation has been hard at work defending secular values and state/church separation. Here’s a look at our latest wins, ongoing analyses, and the advocacy we’re pursuing to keep our government free from religious influence.
A major win for public education
We’re thrilled to announce a significant court victory this week: A federal court has blocked a Louisiana law that would have mandated Ten Commandments displays in public schools. This victory is a huge win in our efforts to keep religious doctrine out of public education. Read more about this landmark decision here.
Election analysis: A divided landscape
In our latest election analysis, we dive into how secular and nonreligious voters supported candidates committed to state/church separation, while religious conservatives tended toward a theocratic agenda. Explore our analysis of the election results here.
We’re concerned about appointments and public media
We will continue to monitoring post-election appointments and the troubling implications of Project 2025 on public media independence. Recently proposed appointments like Mike Huckabee as Israeli ambassador, RFK Jr.’s potential impact on public health and Matt Gaetz’s lack of legal experience but plethora of legal concerns have raised alarms, and we’re committed to keeping these issues in the public eye.
Celebrating progress
Regardless, this week, we’re also celebrating proactive measures in California to protect secular values and the defeat of HR 9495, a bill that sought to undermine religious freedom protections. Learn more about California’s resistance efforts here.
Legal team milestones
Our legal team has not slowed down. A Missouri school district agreed to halt official prayers after we intervened. We’ve also called out a Texas school district for loudspeaker prayers and taken action against a Kentucky detention center’s baptisms of inmates.
Lastly, today, FFRF along with Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma, and the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law & Justice united to challenge Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters’s latest attempt to impose religion on students in the state’s public school system. The coalition sent a letter to every superintendent in Oklahoma urging them not to show or disseminate Walters’ prayer video.
New episodes to watch
We have two great new shows this week. Don’t miss our latest episode of “Freethought Matters” on global secular issues, highlighting the struggles in Islamist theocracies. Finally, our latest episode of Ask An Atheist highlights how we’re preparing for a second Trump term. Watch the episode on YouTube here.
Thank you for standing with us as we continue to protect and strengthen the wall of separation between church and state.
In solidarity,
Sara Tetzloff, FFRF director of marketing and public relations
