Home : Religion and Belief

NYCLU Calls on State Officials to Audit Salvation Army Employment Practices (01/14/2004)
NEW YORK -- In letters sent today to New York State Comptroller Alan G. Hevesi and New York City Comptroller William G. Thompson Jr., the New York Civil Liberties Union raised concerns about possible religious discrimination against employees in state- and city-funded social services programs run by the Salvation Army.

ACLU of San Diego Secures Landmark Settlement in Boy Scout Lease Case (01/08/2004)
SAN DIEGO -- The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties today announced a settlement with the City Council here in its 2000 lawsuit challenging the city's subsidy of the Desert Pacific Boy Scout Council through preferential leases for public land in Balboa Park and Fiesta Island Aquatic Park.

ACLU of Rhode Island Sues On Behalf of Town Resident's Objection to City Hall Religious Display (12/22/2003)
PROVIDENCE, RI - Acting on behalf of a lifelong resident of Cranston, the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island today filed a federal lawsuit challenging the life-sized nativity scene and menorah in front of Cranston City Hall, as well as the policy that Mayor Stephen Laffey recently implemented to authorize those displays.

ACLU of Kentucky Wins Appeal of Ten Commandments Postings in McCreary, Harlan, and Pulaski Counties (12/18/2003)
LOUISVILLE, KY -- Ten Commandments postings in three Kentucky counties manifest a religious purpose and are, therefore, unconstitutional, a federal appeals court ruled today in cases brought by the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky on behalf of local residents.

ACLU Monitoring New Rule Regarding Nativity Scene Display in Iowa Town (12/03/2003)
DES MOINES - The American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa today said has yet to decide whether the display of a nativity scene and disclaimer in an area next to the Tipton courthouse recently designated a "public forum" by Cedar County improperly entangles government with religion.

ACLU Urges Supreme Court to Reject Taxpayer Funding for Clergy Training (12/02/2003)
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments today in Locke v. Davey, which raises the question of whether the federal constitution compels a state to provide scholarship funds for clergy training, in violation of its own constitution.

ACLU Welcomes Senate Decision to Exclude Controversial Vouchers Program from Appropriations Bill (11/18/2003)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today welcomed the decision by the Senate to remove from the District of Columbia Appropriations bill controversial language that would have created the nation's first federally funded school voucher program. A similar provision passed in the House version of the bill on the razor-thin margin of one vote in September. The bill will most likely be included in the omnibus spending measure to be considered by Congress.

Federal Court Says that Virginia County's Prayer Policy Violates Religious Freedom Rules (11/13/2003)
RICHMOND, VA -- A federal magistrate here has ruled that the process by which the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors selects religious leaders to pray at the beginning of its meetings violates separation of church and state.

Pennsylvania Superior Court Rules: Amish Can Stick With Reflective Tape on Buggies (10/21/2003)
PITTSBURGH -- The required display of orange triangles on their horse-drawn buggies is a thing of the past for Pennsylvania's Swartzentruber Amish after a panel of three Pennsylvania Superior Court judges ruled 2-1 today that the triangle is no longer the only legal means of calling attention to their buggies.

ACLU Files Challenge to Religion-Themed Post Office in Connecticut Town (10/03/2003)
HARTFORD -- The Connecticut Civil Liberties Union today filed a federal lawsuit against the United States Postal Service, saying that a contract postal unit in the town of Manchester is replete with Christian religious symbols, messages and images.

ACLU Urges Congress to Reject Government Funded Religion As House Committee Marks Up Community Services Bill (09/25/2003)
WASHINGTON - In the latest skirmish over President Bush's scheme for government-funded religion, the American Civil Liberties Union today urged a House panel to adopt a measure to preserve civil rights protections and prohibit tax dollars from being diverted to fund religious activities.