FFRF is on a winning streak working for your rights!
In the space of less than a month this past fall, the Freedom From Religion Foundation has won three successful court challenges that have . . .
- Remedied a religious test to run for public office in New Jersey
- Ensured that $1.5 million of South Carolina taxpayer monies will not fund a bible-based residential school, and
- Cleaned up the act of a West Virginia school district that hosted a religious revival on campus, among other violations.
Imagine your children or grandchildren being escorted against their will by their teacher to a religious revival, being instructed to bow their heads in prayer and raise their hands as they were being warned to follow Jesus or face eternal torment! Such infamous proselytizing won’t happen again in Cabell County, W.Va. We’re proud of the 100 students who walked out shortly after the violation and of our student plaintiffs and their families who participated in our successful lawsuit, which was settled Oct. 26.
Imagine the constitutional chutzpah of the South Carolina Legislature in earmarking (without sunlight or debate) $1.5 million of taxpayer funding to a private Christian institute whose sole mission is to “provide biblical instruction for public school children.” Our lawsuit prompted the Christian Learning Centers to withdraw its funding request and the case was settled Nov. 9. This is a significant victory for taxpayers, students and our Constitution.
Imagine being a New Jersey citizen with electoral ambitions, as was true for our plaintiff James Tosone, and being forced either to swear a mandatory religious oath in order to appear on the ballot or not be able to run for office at all! The Division of Elections would not allow James to verify his candidate form via a secular affirmation even though Article 6 of the U.S. Constitution explicitly bars any religious test for public office. FFRF came to the rescue, with our lawsuit rectifying this egregious violation in less than a month, on Nov. 14!
FFRF, a national state/church watchdog founded nationally in 1978, has more than 40,000 current members, making FFRF the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America. FFRF has brought more than 100 lawsuits challenging religion in government, winning many significant victories. Today, FFRF’s legal team of about a dozen attorneys and legal assistants also ends more than 100 constitutional infractions a year through educational complaint letters alone. As a carefully run 501(c)(3) nonprofit, FFRF has earned a four-star rating from Charity Navigator for nearly two decades.
FFRF is activist, effective — and working for you and your rights.
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