July, 30 2018, 12:00am EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Rob Boston or Liz Hayes, (202) 466-3234, www.au.org, communications@au.org
Justice Department's 'Religious Liberty Summit' Offends The True Meaning Of Religious Freedom, Says Americans United
The U.S. Justice Department hosted a so-called "Religious Liberty Summit" today, an event Americans United for Separation of Church and State blasted as one-sided and inaccurate.
WASHINGTON
The U.S. Justice Department hosted a so-called "Religious Liberty Summit" today, an event Americans United for Separation of Church and State blasted as one-sided and inaccurate.
"Today's event by the Justice Department offends the true meaning of religious freedom," said Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United. "The event was clearly designed to advance the Trump administration's twisted and dangerous view of religious freedom, one that uses religion to discriminate and harm others. This event exposed the administration's real agenda: to preserve the power of Christian fundamentalists."
During the event, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the creation of a "Religious Liberty Task Force" that will work to implement the guidance he unveiled last year that serves as a blueprint for using religion to discriminate, especially against women and LGBTQ people.
Laser noted that the summit was one-sided and stacked with speakers such as the owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, which cited religion to justify refusing to make a cake for a same-sex couple, and a leader in the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops who advocated for taxpayer-funded adoption and foster care providers to be able to use religion to justify discrimination.
The speakers complained about the state of religious freedom in America today, but nothing was heard from the people who have been denied services or health care because of someone else's religion.
Americans United noted that the Trump administration has consistently misused religious freedom, interpreting that principle to authorize discrimination in doctor's offices and hospitals, workplaces, businesses where people shop and in the government-funded services many Americans rely on.
"Far from seeking to safeguard religious freedom, Trump, Sessions and their allies are hard at work trying to destroy that precious right by favoring the religious views of a select few at the expense of religious freedom for all Americans," said Laser. "They seek religious freedom for some, not for all."
Americans United is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.
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All the union leaders who supported Trump (like Sean O'Brien) should have to answer some painful questions about Trump rescinding collective bargaining rights for TSA agents.
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— Mike Nellis (@mikenellis.bsky.social) March 7, 2025 at 10:03 AM
As Huffpost labor reporter Dave Jamieson explained:
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"He chose the firing squad knowing that three bullets would shatter his bones and destroy his heart."
A desire to resume executions during a 10-year pause due to a shortage of lethal injection drugs prompted Republican state lawmakers to pass and GOP South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster in 2021 to sign legislation forcing the state's death row inmates to choose between the electric chair, firing squad, or lethal injection (if available) as their method of execution.
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Across the United States, there are five more executions scheduled this month, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
This is the first of six executions scheduled in six states this month. From the Death Penalty Information Center, one is scheduled for next week and then a horrifying four the week after that. This appears, however, to be more confluence than some big change. deathpenaltyinfo.org/executions/u...
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— Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner.bsky.social) March 7, 2025 at 3:52 PM
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South Carolina carries out execution by firing squad, first in USA since 2010. A reminder that these 6 MAGA men also intro'd a bill to codify abortion as murder—enabling the horrific scenario that a woman who gets an abortion could be executed by firing squad. www.qasimrashid.com/p/s-carolina...
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— Qasim Rashid, Esq. (@qasimrashid.com) March 8, 2025 at 5:38 AM
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