April 9, 2009 Senate Judiciary Committee Oregon State Legislature Salem, Oregon RE: SB 786 – Oregon Workplace Religious Freedom Act (SUPPORT) Mr. Chairman and Members, Thank you for the opportunity to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the Workplace Religious Freedom Act. As an attorney I have had the privilege of representing employees in several […]
GENERAL Talking Points Federal Religious Accommodation Law Defining terms: "Undue hardship." Title VII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended in 1972, requires employers to "reasonably" accommodate the religious practices of their employees unless, by so doing, the employer would incur an "undue hardship on the conduct of the employer's business."[1] The act itself does […]
By Michael D. Peabody Last week as it circled the globe, protesters chased the Olympic flame as it traveled to Beijing. That China has been involved in human rights abuses and untoward activities in Tibet is a fact, and a boycott of the Olympics would certainly send a signal to the authorities that the world is paying attention. But as […]
Slate contributor and labor union attorney, Paul L. Edenfield, asks the questions as to workers have the right to have Sundays off. This may be the forerunner of additional trends in this area: The New Blue Laws They're about giving workers a break, not forcing church attendance. By Paul L. Edenfield Updated Monday, April 7, 2008, at 7:39 AM ET […]
Presidential candidate John McCain remains private about his religion. By Jonathan Martin – Politico.com Traversing the country this week on a tour of places that have shaped his life and informed his values, John McCain spoke in strikingly personal language to introduce himself to the American public. But missing so far is any significant mention of religious faith. In an […]
Religion is supposed to be Barack Obama's strength. Unlike many Democratic candidates before him, Obama speaks with ease about his faith. He attends Sunday worship and knows his Bible. His supporters believe he can pry some committed churchgoers away from the GOP. But the furor over comments by his Chicago pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, broadcast again and again on […]
I am pleased to announce that it is now time for the "Annual War on Christmas." Originally published at the Spectrum Blog Brace yourself for the ceremonial de-lighting of the Christmas tree, blowing out of the Menorah candles, and sequestering of the Holy Family. Talk show hosts will decry the "attack on Judeo-Christianity" while children will wonder whether ACLU injunctions […]
By Michael D. Peabody, Esq. This election year, the California State Capitol has once again become a flashpoint in the ongoing culture war. Few topics fan the flames among voters more than the issue of gay rights. For the left, it is a civil rights issue where blatant discrimination and intolerance are the norm and the stakes couldn't be higher […]
If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein.
— Robert H. Jackson, West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624 (1943)