2016 EDITION our most basic rights are being gravely threatened. This Y threat is embodied in the rising tide of institutional hostility UNDENIABLE to free exercise of religion in America—despite religion’s essential role in America’s well-being, and America’s Founders’ belief that religious liberty was the foundation for all other freedoms. UNDENIABLE: The Survey of Hostility to Religion in America, 2016 Edition, is an alarming list of more than 1,200 attacks on religious beliefs and practices that have undergirded America for UNDENIABLE centuries. It o ers irrefutable evidence of the growing crisis in EDITION 2016 four key areas: • The Public Arena (government, public places, and the workplace) The Survey of Hostility • Education (students, parents, teachers and administrators) • Churches and Other Faith-Based Organizations to Religion in America • The U.S. Military (active duty, veterans and their memorials) Skillful legal strategy can protect religious liberty. But more Americans must awaken to the crisis. That is the challenge of UNDENIABLE. KELLY SHACKELFORD UNDENIABLE, 2016 Edition is published GENERAL EDITOR by First Liberty Institute (formerly Liberty Institute), the nation’s largest legal organization dedicated solely to protecting religious liberty in America. First Liberty Institute’s President and CEO is Kelly Shackelford, Esq., a constitutional scholar who has argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, and a recipient of the William Kelly Shackelford, Esq. Bentley Ball Award for his pioneering work protecting religious freedom. FirstLiberty.org UNDENIABLE The Survey of Hostility to Religion in America 2016 Edition Editorial Team Kelly Shackelford Chairman Jeffrey Mateer Executive Editor Justin Butterfield Editor-in-chief Candice Lundquist Julie Hennighausen Stephanie Phillips Assistant Editors Past Contributors Michael Andrews Bryan Clegg UNDENIABLE The Survey of Hostility to Religion in America 2016 Edition Kelly Shackelford, chairman Jeffrey Mateer, executive editor Justin Butterfield, editor-in-chief Candice Lundquist, Julie Hennighausen, and Stephanie Phillips, assistant editors Copyright © 2013–2016 First Liberty Institute. All rights reserved. This publication is not to be used for legal advice. Because the law is constantly changing and each factual situation is unique, First Liberty Institute and its attorneys do not warrant, either expressly or impliedly, that the law, cases, statutes, and rules discussed or cited in this publication have not been subject to change, amendment, reversal, or revision. If you have a legal question or need legal advice, please contact an attorney. First Liberty Institute’s attorneys may be contacted by going to www.firstliberty.org, selecting the “Contact” menu option at the top of the page, and then selecting “Request Legal Help.” First Liberty Institute 2001 W. Plano Parkway, Suite 1600 Plano, Texas 75075 (972) 941–4444 TABLE OF CONTENTS 5 Hostility to Religion Harms Every American 9 Executive Summary 21 Section I: Attacks in the Public Arena 145 Section II: Attacks in the Schoolhouse 285 Section III: Attacks Against Churches and Ministries 351 Section IV: Attacks in the Military 371 Managing Editorial Team 373 About First Liberty Institute 3 Undeniable: The Survey of Hostility to Religion in America 4 HOSTILITY TO RELIGION HARMS EVERY AMERICAN Driven from every other corner of the earth, freedom of thought and the right of private judgment in matters of conscience direct their course to this happy country as their last asylum. —Samuel Adams, August 1, 1776 Hostility to religion in America is rising like floodwaters, as proven by the increased numbers of cases and attacks documented in this report. This flood is engulfing ordinary citizens who simply try to live normal lives according to their faith and conscience. It is eroding the bedrock on which stand vital American institutions such as government, education, the military, business, houses of worship, and charity. It has the potential to wash away the ground that supports our other rights, including freedom of speech, press, assembly, and government by consent of the people. Since 2012, First Liberty Institute (formerly Liberty Institute) has documented and publicized this rising tide of hostility to religion in America. First Liberty Institute is the largest legal organization in America with the exclusive mission of protecting religious freedom for all our citizens. So it is important for us to know the scope of the problem, and we are glad to share what we learn with our fellow Americans, including our nation’s leaders in Congress and beyond. In this 2016 edition of our annual study Undeniable: The Survey of Hostility to Religion in America, First Liberty Institute’s team of researchers, led by a Harvard-trained constitutional attorney, documents a continuing increase in the number of incidents hostile toward religion. The flood is a national problem. Every American should share in the concern for at least three reasons: First, individuals and families are being hurt. The attacks you will read about in these pages are sweeping away small businesses, careers, and ministries. Behind the legalities are tears, anguish, and the denial of basic human tolerance, compassion, and common decency. It’s time for a national rejection of politically correct cruelty based on discrimination against traditional American forms of faith. 5 Undeniable: The Survey of Hostility to Religion in America Second, the attacks injure us all. The animus toward religion springs from a relatively small but powerful sector of society composed of influential people and organizations who consider active faith as irrelevant at best, and dangerous to essential social progress at worst. As a result of such hostility to religion: • Good employees are being unlawfully fired, and productive businesses recklessly harmed; • Valuable public servants are being aggressively driven from their fields; • Ministries, churches, and chaplains are being threatened or restricted from fulfilling their spiritual callings. The flood is curtailing help for students, the elderly, the sick, the poor, orphans, addicts, and the homeless. It is even endangering efforts to show compassion and comfort to current and former members of our military, jeopardizing morale and thus our national security. One must ask: Is America prepared to sacrifice the benefits of open religious activity on the altar of modern political correctness? Noted social historian Dr. Rodney Stark of Baylor University undertook a comprehensive analysis of the positive impact of religion in the United States in reducing crime, improving education, bettering mental and physical health, increasing employment, and reducing welfare. He conservatively estimated the benefit to be at least $2.67 trillion per year.1 Other scholars confirm this overall assertion. Can we afford to ignore such research and toss away the blessings of free religious exercise? Third, freedom of religion is foundational to all other freedoms. From the beginning of the colonies and continuing until today, immigrants came to America for religious freedom. Freedom of religious conscience is part of a person’s core identity, and embedded in America’s cultural DNA. Further, religious freedom is in the First Amendment because all other freedoms rest upon it. Without the concept of a higher authority to make government accountable to unchanging principles of justice, all other freedoms are at risk of being violated, redefined, or revoked by government. As the Declaration of Independence says, all men are “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights . That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men.” 1 Stark, Rodney, America’s Blessings (West Conshohocken, PA, Templeton Press, 2012, Kindle ed. 85%) 6 Hostility to Religion Harms Every American The good news is that the vast majority of the hostility to religion you will read in this survey is unlawful. It succeeds only because of its own bluff and the passivity of its victims. Hostility to religion can be defeated in the legal system—but only if challenged by Americans like you. When you stand up, First Liberty Institute and your fellow Americans will be standing with you offering legal assistance, research, and decisive help. Kelly Shackelford President, CEO, and Chief Counsel First Liberty Institute 7 Undeniable: The Survey of Hostility to Religion in America 8 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY An age is called Dark not because the light fails to shine, but because people refuse to see it. James A. Michener, Space Abstract Hostility to religious expression in America continues to grow at an alarming rate. The hostility is growing in the areas of: • The “Public Arena” of public places, government, and the workplace. • The “Schoolhouse” of education, from K–12 through higher academia. • “Churches and Ministries,” in which one might expect hostility to be the least. • The “Military,” which includes our service members, veterans, and their memorials. More than 1,200 cases are documented in this 2016 edition of Undeniable, yet this is not an exhaustive accounting. These cases include past years’ cases but show a clear expansion during this past year. Quantitatively and qualitatively, the hostility is undeniable. And it is dangerous. Attacks in Four Key Social Sectors The title of this survey, Undeniable: The Survey of Hostility to Religion in America, exemplifies its purpose: to bring to light the increasing acts of hostility to religion in such a way that even the most uninformed and