EXCERPT: COLORADO SPRINGS — An announcement made by a Colorado Springs middle school, stipulating how students can wear rosaries, has the ACLU speaking out against the decision. The group says religious liberty does not stop at the entrance to a public school. [District spokesperson Elaine] Naleski says some students were offended at how others were…
Category: Current Events
French Court Approves Veil Ban (AJE)
EXCERPT: France’s highest court has approved a law banning full-facial veils in public – with the exception of mosques – eliminating the last hurdle for the ban. Those behind the law argue that it will protect women’s rights. Its critics, however, say that it stigmatises Muslim women and it is a breach of religious freedom….
Mainstreaming Hate in the Netherlands (ForeignPolicy)
Here is an excerpt from an article by former Financial Times writer and Dutch media Middle East correspondent Ferry Biedermann published on ForeignPolicy.com on October 4, 2010. The rise of the far right has hardly caused a ripple in the Netherlands. The Dutch coalition deal was done before the end of September, marking the political…
Druidry to be classed as religion in Britain (BBC)
EXCERPT: UNITED KINGDOM — Druidry is to become the first pagan practice to be given official recognition as a religion [in Britain]. The Charity Commission has accepted that druids’ worship of natural spirits could be seen as religious activity. The Druid Network’s charitable status entitles it to tax breaks, but the organisation says it does…
Texas Ed Board Adopts Resolution Limiting Islam (NPR)
EXCERPT: AUSTIN — The Texas State Board of Education adopted a resolution Friday that seeks to curtail references to Islam in Texas textbooks, as social conservative board members warned of what they describe as a creeping Middle Eastern influence in the nation’s publishing industry. The board approved the one-page nonbinding resolution, which urges textbook publishers…
Stopping US Muslim backlash (AJE)
EXCERPT: Religious leaders – Muslim, Jewish, and Christian – met in Washington, DC, on Tuesday [September 7] to denounce anti-Muslim bigotry. More than 30 religious leaders [were] in one room with one aim: to stop a rise in anti-Muslim sentiment that has already had violent consequences. There was the attack on a Muslim taxi driver…
Liberty and tolerance: Our checkered history with religious equality (OregonLive.com)
Here is an excerpt from a great article by Willamette Law Professor Steven K. Green published on OregonLive.com on September 10, 2010. Liberty and tolerance: Our checkered history with religious equality Published: Friday, September 10, 2010, 9:00 AM By Steven K. Green This seems like a good time for a refresher on an important American…
Petraeus Condemns U.S. Church’s Plan to Burn Qurans (WSJ)
EXCERPT: KABUL-The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan said the planned burning of Qurans on Sept. 11 by a small Florida church could put the lives of American troops in danger and damage the war effort. Gen. David Petraeus said the Taliban would exploit the demonstration for propaganda purposes, drumming up anger toward the U.S. and…
Hitchens on the Danger of Emotions Underlying Self-Pity of Beck Rally (Slate)
Christopher Hitchens in Slate: In a rather curious and confused way, some white people are starting almost to think like a minority, even like a persecuted one. What does it take to believe that Christianity is an endangered religion in America or that the name of Jesus is insufficiently spoken or appreciated? Who wakes up…
9th Circuit: World Vision Can Continue Faith-Based Hiring
On August 23, 2010, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that World Vision is a religious organization and is therefore exempt from Title VII prohibitions on religious discrimination. Three former employees Silvia Spencer, Ted Youngberg, and Vicki Hulse had had filed suit against the well-known humanitarian organization in 2007, claiming they had been victims…