America’s Biggest Issues: Religious Freedom

The first amendment to the United States constitution begins, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” Fast forward almost 250 years and religious freedom is one of the most pressing issues in American culture today.

The Heritage Foundation’s Genevieve Wood takes a look at some of the concerns surrounding this debate and how, ultimately, everyone benefits from religious freedom.

[TheHeritageFoundation]

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[niksterrr]

A Christian, a Muslim, a Jew, and an Atheist walk into a café. They all talked, drank coffee, had fun, and became great friends. This is 100% true. It happens when you're not an asshole.

[vladproductions]

How religous freedom should be: "sorry, i cant say that because of my religion".
How it should NOT be (and how some people see it): "hey, you CANT say that because of MY religion"

[weber]

Separation of Church and State is so important. Freedom FROM religion in government is also what America is based on... please keep this distinction clear.

[rockmcdwayne]

The way i see it: Freedom of religion is not free anymore if your religion requires i also follow your religion.
Also one extreme example would be: What if your religion demands human sacrifice? Should you be free to practice your belief?
Freedom of religion is a slippery slope. I support it as long as its PERSONAL. If it becomes something more, then it starts violating other rights.

[paulaglenn]

This should be shown to all students and to all of congress. I think they have veered off in a different direction.

[thejazzmonastery]

What's with the annoying "music" backtrack? I'm trying to listen to the words.

[mrroberts]

You described religion as people’s core values. You then went on to describe non-religious people. There are people with no core values?

[spongeintheshoe]

1:36 That’s not flipping the question, though. Flipping the question in this case would be “Should a lesbian graphic designer or printer be forced to create a flyer for a straight wedding?”

1:58 The specific service they are requesting is a wedding cake. If you’re willing to make a wedding cake for a straight wedding but not a gay wedding, then you _are_ denying them a service because of who they are, because who they are is the difference between a gay wedding and a straight wedding.

[TerraDactyl-hcff]

Where are the links to prove that these financial claims are true?

[raybin]

Freedom OF religion IS one of the best ideas the founding fathers ever implemented.🇺🇸👍

[redblaze]

1. If you are a private business that sells goods for the public, then you have to serve everyone, because if you tolerate the smallest form of discrimination it will open the doors for bigger ones.
2. Those businesses who imposed Jim Crow laws did so by using market-freedom as an excuse. And when the government wanted to end Jim Crow laws, leaders of those businesses complained that the government was telling them how to run their business.

[nanorivera]

Bakers and forests shouldn't be allowed to discriminate against people based on their religious belief if that involves people in a minority group. Being allowed to discriminate in that way would mean that members of minority groups would have their agency limited based on pervasivee religious beliefs are in the area of the county they live in. We have refocus freedom so that people can live their lives how they want to live them.

Customers can just go somewhere else? Religious Bakers can choose a different job, too. If your core beliefs tell you that you should pass judgements and discriminate against people for any immutable aspect of their demographic, your beliefs are shit, and so are you. You don't understand or value freedom and you should probably move to a different country with beliefs more akin to yours. Maybe Palestine?

[rogermetzger]

There is a way to solve this problem but many people on both sides of the political divide don't want to solve it because perpetuating the problem perpetuates donations to their political "war chests".

The solution is to define "religion" the way I think it was understood before the Bill of Rights was ratified, i.e. Religion is the sum of those beliefs, practices and prohibitions that pertain to a person's concept of the highest powers of the universe.

Theists think the highest powers of the universe include a God or gods or/and a supernatural adversary. Humanists think human beings are the highest form of life and, therefore, the highest power in the universe.

If a person's choices in the marketplace of ideas are based on reason alone, it is "reasonable" (pardon the pun) to try to legislate those ideas. Everyone, however, has some concept of what the highest powers of the universe are, so attempts to legislate ethics becomes reasonable only when the people attempting to pass legislation can stop arguing from their religious perspectives.

I'm aware that dictionaries and thesaurus equate morality and ethics but, in actual usage (in the United States), most people use the word, "morality", to refer to behavior standards derived from a God or gods while most people use the word, "ethics", to refer behavior standards based on reason. For that reason, I always vote against any legislation that is promoted as "the moral thing to do", even when I agree that whatever it is might actually be "the moral thing to do".

[isidoreaerys]

But where does it stop? If a transperson stops at the only gas station on a long interstate does that business have the religious prerogative to deny that person the ability to buy gasoline and water?
No one is telling the gas station attendant he has to HAVE a sex change. It doesn’t interfere with his ability to pray, worship or believe god it’s simply expecting him to respect members of his society with common decency and not allow his personal bigotry to manifest in outward discrimination.

[leolok]

Great presentation. A pity the viewer is distracted by the disturbing loud background humming and banging noise. As usual, if it is found necessary to add music [which in nearly all cases can be conveniently dispensed with] the tone, noise, style, volume and touch must merge seamlessly with the content. If this can’t be properly worked out, better turn off and shut the noise up.

[draneym]

Except when you use religion as a convenient excuse to explain away any heinous number of acts. Honestly you could make a pretty decent argument that allows child molestation is a religious belief and a court would buy it

[HongFeiBai]

Both the left and right need to read the Constitution.

[OG]

It's a sad day for our country. Business and government believe there is a constitutional right to "freedom FROM religion" when the constitution provides citizens "freedom OF religion." Big difference.

[meagan]

Why would this lawyer from the Heitage Foundation bring up the Civil Rights Act. After the Civil Rights Act, religious organizations struggled to keep schools segregated through the 70's, by starting private schools and capitalizing on frightened parents. The Supreme court decided that these private/religious schools could not keep their tax exempt status if they continued to remain segregated.

Many of these schools were run by Bob Jones Sr. and Jerry Falwell, they were big money makers and a great way to indoctrinate kids into the cult of their religion....praying on them for generations of political and economic power. Jones had already lost in court and Falwell turned to Paul Weyrich. Weyrich, in order to tap into angst and anger of Southern religious groups still spinning over Brown V/S Board of Education, started a political organization known as the "Heritage Foundation". Weyrinch convinced Falwell to take a different approach and they based their defense off freedom". Keep in mind this was to keep their cash cow turning by offering white people a school for their kids where they didn't have to mix with brown kids.

The wealth and power of these "supposed - church based" businesses can still be felt in politics today as every center to right leaning political figure has latched onto this idea of "religious freedom", to include the current Trump administration. Remember this is all based on racism /bigotry and more importantly profit and power. The Civil Rights Act is law....and the Supreme Court has already ruled on this subject which is why this Heritage Foundation rep is quick to say....the courts were right then....but now we are bigoted for different reasons....now it's the gays and lesbians and those gross transgender totally not the same as discriminating against black Americans. Except that it totally is exactly like that.

This is about controlling you for their political gain. This is about making you fear a transgender woman using a public toilet and locker rooms in places where quite frankly we have been quietly existing for many many decades. Since there have been public restrooms and facilities. They will tell you that your rights are violated because you are forced to bake a cake and even give you comparisons that add up just enough for you to allow yourself that excuse to be afraid of some major right you are supposedly losing. It is exactly the same as refusing to bake a cake for someone that is African American. More importantly it keeps you afraid....it keeps you putting your money on their political horses. They make you afraid of Mexicans so you rush to build a wall. Did you know border crossings are way, way down....not just this year....but for the last eight years in a row. So why this drama over something that is less and less an they need your votes and your money and they need you to keep your eyes shut to the truth.

You don't have to agree to live your life as a member of the LGBT community. If you are a decent person though, you will stand up for people not like you when it is obvious that they are under attack. This is just like what happened to African Americans. Shoot....this is just like what happened to the Jewish people under Adolf Hitler's rule. Keep your cake, don't let these people destroy us so they can lead you by the nose and take your money. Poisoning you to your fellow Americans, many of whom have fought for this country, even though they are just a bit different than you are. Keep your religion, worship God as you see fit....just don't place your morals and religious beliefs on the heads of others....where they must do as you wish or suffer and die. There is already a religious group that does that....they are called al-Qaeda.

Know your history and at least understand that if you believe these ever increasing flow of lies and misinterpreted data from organizations like the "Heritage Foundation", about the LGBT community, ...where will it all stop? After you take the weakest of us, due to size of population only, and make it so we don't or can't is next? Gays, Lesbians and Bi sure many of you are ok with then who? African Americans again? Immigrants? Muslims? Jewish people? Any person of a slightly different religious view than the one currently at the top of the pile? Gun owners for sure at some they want to seal their control over you.

Keep worrying about a couple of transgender people winning all the first place ribbons and trophies. Keep worrying about where I go pee. Keep worrying that women can't be women any more because there is no room for transgender women to be women too. Keep being distracted by one unfounded fear after another until these people destroy us all with their greed and lust for power.

If after all the fact that this information is readily available on-line for any that you still back up these people and go along with this, then shame on you. You are not real men and you are not real women, if you can't help your fellow human beings at least be treated the same as everyone on you for selling us out.

Thank you Brynn Tannehill for openning my eyes on this subject: