WASHINGTON — Thousands of professing atheists and agnostics from across the country descended on Washington, D.C. today for the “Reason Rally,” an event that is designed to discuss politics from a godless perspective. “That’s the reason we’re holding this in an election year,” executive director Lyz Liddell told CNN. “We want to see reason taking precedence over […]
ORLANDO, Fla. — A Christian group in Florida was not allowed to distribute Bibles for Religious Freedom Day on Friday after the school district decided to change its policy on distribution by outside groups when a New York-based Satanic organization sought last fall to pass out coloring books to students. As previously reported, the Freedom From […]
INDIANAPOLIS — The governor of Indiana is vowing to defend the display of a veterans’ memorial in one the state parks after a prominent atheist activist organization expressed opposition to the carving because it includes a cross. “So long as I am governor, I will defend the right of Hoosiers to display this sculpture in Whitewater […]
COLUMBUS, OH — Two Ohio lawmakers introduced a state version of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) this week, complementing the federal law that is already the standard across the nation. Representatives Tim Derickson (R) and Bill Patmon (D) held a press conference on Wednesday in the state capital to outline the purpose of the […]
SAN DIEGO – A judge in a California court ruled this week that yoga is not an inherently religious exercise, and is thus constitutional to practice in public schools. As previously reported, the Encinitas Unified School District (EUSD) in southwestern California recently started teaching yoga classes to its students after receiving a $533,000 grant from […]
Phoenix, Arizona — Lawmakers in the Arizona House of Representatives passed a bill this week that seeks to expand protections for the free exercise of religion, sending the legislation now to the Senate for a vote. Votes for and against SB 1178 were generally along party lines, with a final outcome of 32 to 24. […]
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania — A Pennsylvania lawmaker has unveiled legislation that would require the naming of plaintiffs who file lawsuits to remove religious symbols from public places. Rep. Tim Krieger (R-Delmont) said he introduced House Bill 922 in response to two lawsuits filed on behalf of anonymous plaintiffs by the Wisconsin-based Freedom from Religion Foundation. The […]
Encinitas, California — The parents of two elementary school students have filed a lawsuit against their local school district for teaching yoga to their children, which they assert promotes religion in the classroom. Schools within the Encinitas Unified School District began teaching Ashtanga yoga to children last September as part of a three-year, $533,000 grant […]
AKRON, Ohio — A well-known professing atheist group that seeks to separate God from government is asking city council in Akron, Ohio to cease presenting prayers at public meetings. The Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) sent a letter to council President Margo Sommerville on Tuesday, advising that a “concerned resident” contacted the entity to […]
(Christian Headlines) — A Texas judge’s practice of opening his court sessions in chaplain-led prayer violates the U.S. Constitution’s prohibition on government establishment of religion, a federal district court ruled Friday. Judge Wayne Mack, a justice of the peace in Montgomery County, Texas, created a chaplaincy program in 2014 allowing volunteer chaplains to “assist the […]