State/Church Bulletin

Head Start Rights Retained

A second attempt this Congressional session to amend the Head Start reauthorization bill to permit religious hiring discrimination failed in May. The religious right had sought to rewrite rules to permit "faith-based providers" to discriminate in hiring based on religion.

Food Aid Programs Condemned

U.S. food aid programs are so wasteful that food delivery has been cut in half in the past five years, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office released in April. The GAO condemned as "inherently inefficient" the sale of American-grown food in poor countries to finance antipoverty programs run by aid groups.

The practice, called "monetization," means food is shipped at great expense to poor nations, where nonprofit groups sell the food on the local markets to subsidize "development programs." Among those endorsing monetization are (Christian) World Vision and Adventist Development and Relief Agency International.

Legal Briefs

Jail Ministry Settlement. Officials in Bradford, Penn. agreed in April to bar public funding of religious activities as part of a settlement of a lawsuit challenging a "faith-based" inmate ministry. The lawsuit was filed in 2005 by Americans United, ACLU of Pennsylvania and a national law firm. Bradford County and other government agencies were funding The Firm Foundation, a religious rehab program, at the Bradford County jail.

The county will prohibit any public funds to be used to support any religious activities, to purchase religious materials or construction or maintenance of religious buildings, to pressure or coerce inmates to attend or participate in religious activities, or discriminate based on religion in providing services, and will monitor compliance by all religiously-affiliated contractors. Part of the suit is still pending.
Texas Bible Display Nixed. In a 11-5 vote, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in late April ruled a legal controversy is moot over a bible display outside the Harris County (Texas) Civil Courthouse. It left intact the lower court ruling finding the display violates state/church separation. The display, erected at the courthouse main entrance in 1956 by a Christian charity, featured an open bible illuminated by neon lighting in a glass-topped case. Attorney/plaintiff Kay Staley, with help from Americans United, challenged the display. In the midst of the litigation, the county, claiming the need to renovate, removed the bible stand.
UW Settles Case. The State of Wisconsin agreed in April to pay $20,000 in legal fees to lawyers for an evangelical group that the University of Wisconsin-Superior had refused to recognize, because it requires leaders to be Christian. As part of the settlement, the university reinstated the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. The fellowship was represented by the Alliance Defense Fund.
Religious Post Office Displays Illegal. A federal judge ruled in April that post offices across the country run by churches or other organizations may not promote religion through displays or other materials. U.S. District Court Judge Dominic J. Squatrito found that the actions of a contract postal unit are considered the actions of the postal service.

The judge ruled that the religious displays at the unit run by Sincerely Yours Inc., part of the Full Gospel Interdenominational Church, in Manchester, Conn., "put the church's beliefs front and center, out for the public to see, endorsing the church's form of Christianity and seeking outsiders to join the church in its mission." The displays "violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment." The suit was brought by Bertram Cooper, a Jewish war veteran, with help from the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union.
Court: Taxpayers Can't Challenge Jamboree Support. A 3-judge panel of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously on April 4 that several religious leaders did not have taxpayer standing to object to federal assistance to the Jamboree of Boy Scouts of America, which has a religious test for membership and also discriminates against gays. The Defense Department spends $6-$8 million every four years in providing space, tents and help to Boy Scouts for the Jamboree. Judges William Bauer and Diane Wood ruled that spending is not challengeable by taxpayers.
Suit Over Church Graduation Site. The New Jersey chapter of the ACLU is suing the Newark public school district for holding graduation ceremonies in a Baptist church, in violation of a Muslim student's rights. The student's religious beliefs forbid him from entering a building with religious images.