House hearing on religious liberty in US
February 20, 2017
The House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice held a hearing on the state of religious liberty in America.
Four people offered testimony at the February 16 hearing:
- Kimberlee Colby, director, Center for Law & Religious Freedom
- Hannah Smith, senior counsel, Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
- Rabbi David Saperstein, former United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom
- Casey Mattox, senior counsel, Alliance Defending Freedom
Colby, Smith, and Mattox expressed concern at developments that have taken place in recent years, while Saperstein (an Obama administration appointee) worried that religious liberty may be used to excuse discrimination.
“Misuse of nondiscrimination policies to exclude religious persons from the public square threatens the pluralism at the heart of our free society,” warned Colby. “Those who insist that we must choose between religious liberty and nondiscrimination policies demand a zero-sum game in which religious liberty, nondiscrimination principles, and pluralism all ultimately lose.”
Mattox added:
Congress should work to ensure every American can freely live and work consistent with their convictions in all aspects of their lives without fear of government censorship.
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