Religious Freedom News
The Daily Signal provides coverage of religious freedom issues in the United States and around the world, with reporting on policy, legal challenges, persecution, and the impact on people of faith.
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Leftist Group Smears Religious Freedom Summit; Democratic Co-Chair Responds
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Katrina Lantos Swett—founder of the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice and a co-chair of the International Religious Freedom Summit, which took place in Washington, D.C., earlier this week—responded to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s attack on the summit in a statement to The Daily Signal on Friday. The SPLC,…Tyler O’Neil -
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Mike Johnson, Warning of Global Threats to Religious Freedom, Urges Biden to Protect Uyghurs
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., urged the Biden administration Wednesday to take stronger action against the Chinese Communist Party as the ruling government’s treatment of a minority group, the predominantly Muslim Uyghurs, continues to invite allegations of genocide, human rights violations, and religious hostility. Johnson addressed a crowd gathered at the annual International Religious Freedom…Ryan Foley -
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EXCLUSIVE: Religious Freedom Advocates Demand Answers on State Department’s Exclusion of Nigeria, India From Persecution List
FIRST IN DAILY SIGNAL: A group of international religious freedom experts are calling for Secretary of State Antony Blinken to testify before a congressional hearing about the State Department’s decision to exclude Nigeria and India from a list of nations with severe violations of religious freedom. In a letter sent Wednesday, first obtained by The…Mary Margaret Olohan -
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Despite 5,000 Killings in 2023, Biden’s State Dept. Leaves Nigeria Off Religious Freedom Watch List for 3rd Year
For the third consecutive year, the Biden administration’s Department of State has left Nigeria off of its list of “Countries of Particular Concern,” a list that catalogs the countries around the world that have perpetrated or tolerated “particularly severe violations of religious freedom.” The move comes despite the fact that Nigeria leads the world in…Dan Hart -
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First Amendment Right to Religious Freedom Applies to Everyone but Jews
The First Amendment no longer applies to the openly Jewish. As antisemitic rallies, chants, and violence skyrocket in the United States and the Biden administration shifts focus to Islamophobia, many Jews have been forced to take their safety into their own hands. In America, rallies and other activities in support of the Hamas terrorist organization…Tony Kinnett -
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After 30 Years of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the Law—and Our Liberty—Are Under Attack
Thirty years ago today, President Bill Clinton signed into law the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, or RFRA, to protect what he called “the most precious of all American liberties.” Presidents of both parties have declared religious freedom to be one of our most fundamental freedoms, a “critical foundation of our nation’s liberty,” and “a fundamental…Thomas Jipping -
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On 25th Anniversary, Religious Freedom More Important Than Ever
As the Biden administration pleads with Hamas to release more than 220 hostages, including 10 Americans, and Israel readies for a ground invasion of Gaza, a bipartisan group of more than a dozen current and former members of Congress spent Monday underscoring the continued need to promote religious freedom at home and abroad as a…Susan Crabtree -
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How God Used ‘Average Joe’ to Defend Religious Freedom: Coach Kennedy Explains in New Book
“Average” is not the adjective that comes to mind when talking about an American who took a religious freedom case all the way to the Supreme Court, but football coach Joe Kennedy says he identified with the word. “I’ve always looked at myself actually [as] below average,” Kennedy says. “I really had no idea that…Virginia Allen -
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Religious Freedom Again in Legal Peril in Finland
“It is not for the district court to interpret biblical concepts.” Such was the judgment of the Finnish court tasked with ruling on the case of Päivi Räsänen, a 28-year member of the Finnish parliament, former minister of the interior, medical doctor, grandmother, and Christian prosecuted for “hate speech.” Her “crime”? Publicly sharing her faith-based…Sam Brownback -
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DeSantis Exposes the Real Reason Why the Left Attacks Parental Rights and Religious Freedom
ATLANTA—Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned that the Left’s attacks on religious freedom and parental rights represent an attempt to impose its pseudo-religious “orthodoxy” on society. “They have an orthodoxy on the Left that they want to impose on society, it’s basically their religion,” DeSantis, a leading Republican candidate for president in 2024, said at The…Tyler O’Neil -
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Religious Freedom Coalition Urges Senate to Reject Judge Nominee, Citing Her ‘Opposition’ to First Amendment Protections
The Senate will vote soon on the controversial nomination of D.C. Judge Loren AliKhan to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 11-10 entirely along party lines Thursday to advance AliKhan’s nomination to a full Senate floor vote, despite a coalition of more than a dozen legal and policy…Virginia Allen -
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Religious Freedom Wins in Court Case About Trans Medical Procedures
Doctors, other medical personnel, and hospitals with faith-based objections to transgender surgeries are celebrating a win against an Obamacare mandate this week as President Joe Biden declined to appeal a ruling to the Supreme Court. The case, called Sisters of Mercy v. Becerra, is the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty’s second successful challenge of what…Elise McCue -
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Watchdogs Press JPMorgan Chase Bank for Answers on Cancellation of Religious Freedom Group’s Account
JPMorgan Chase & Co. wants to exclude shareholder resolutions from two conservative watchdog groups that relate to the bank’s closing of the account of a religious-freedom nonprofit founded by former Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback. Brownback, a former U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom during the Trump administration, is also a Republican former member of the…Fred Lucas -
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Leftist Group Slams Religious Freedom Summit for ‘Hate’; Democrat Responds
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Katrina Lantos Swett, founder of the Lantos Foundation and a co-chair of the International Religious Freedom Summit that took place in Washington, D.C., earlier this month, responded to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s attack on the summit in a statement to The Daily Signal on Tuesday. The SPLC, a left-leaning advocacy…Tyler O’Neil -
- Opinion
International Religious Freedom Summit Spotlights Atrocities in Ukraine, China, Nigeria
Dmitri Bodyu, a Ukrainian American pastor, is a three-time religious refugee who last year added “Russian prisoner” to his list of life-or-death challenges. As a teenager in 1989, Bodyu and his family fled religious persecution in the Soviet Union and moved to Texas, where they were given legal refugee status and eventually became U.S. citizens,…Susan Crabtree -
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In Victory for Religious Freedom, Student Will Be Allowed to Wear ‘Jesus Loves Me’ Mask at School
In what some are calling a victory for religious freedom, elementary schooler Lydia Booth, 11, will now be allowed to wear her “Jesus Loves Me” face mask to school if she chooses. Following two years of legal proceedings, a settlement has been reached between the Simpson County School District in Mississippi and the attorneys representing…Virginia Allen -
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Same-Sex Marriage Bill Threatening Religious Freedom Heads to Biden’s Desk: Here Are the 39 Republicans Who Voted for It
The House of Representatives gave final approval to the Respect for Marriage Act Thursday. The bill, which passed 258-169, is now headed to President Joe Biden’s desk. Every single Democrat voted for the legislation, as did 39 Republicans. Most Republicans (169) voted against the measure, while 1 voted “present” and four did not vote. The…Gillian Richards -
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These GOP Senators Won’t Say Whether They Support Vital Religious Freedom Amendments
Ahead of another vote on the so-called Respect for Marriage Act, most of the 12 GOP senators who previously voted for the legislation are refusing to divulge whether they support Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee’s amendment protecting Americans’ religious freedom. Following the Thanksgiving holiday, the Senate will hold a procedural vote Monday on an amendment,…Mary Margaret Olohan -
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Second Key GOP Senator Announces Support for Religious Freedom Amendment to Respect for Marriage Act
A second senator who voted for the Respect for Marriage Act will support Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee's amendment protecting religious freedom, though she did not say whether she would insist on the amendment's adoption as a condition for supporting cloture on the legislation. Republican Wyoming Sen. Cynthia Lummis will support the Lee amendment if…Mary Margaret Olohan -
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GOP Senator Who Voted for Respect for Marriage Act Supports Vital Religious Freedom Amendments
A Republican senator who voted for the so-called Respect for Marriage Act supports Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee's and Republican Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford's amendments to the legislation, The Daily Signal has learned. Republican Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan is working hard to ensure that the necessary votes are attained to include the amendments, which aimed…Mary Margaret Olohan