Discrimination against Catholics Antisemitism Discrimination against members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Discrimination against Muslims Based on the research carried out by the University of Washington, Muslims and atheists in the United States deal with experience religious discrimination more than those of Christian faiths.
Discrimination against atheists Discrimination against Neopagans According to
Starhawk, modern pagans, especially Wiccans and Ásatrú followers, encounter widespread religious discrimination across multiple fields.
Discrimination against Jehovah's Witnesses Reynolds v. United States In 1878, the U.S. supreme court, in
Reynolds v. United States, ruled that a law against
bigamy was not considered to be religiously discriminatory against members of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), who were practicing
polygamy up until 1890.
George Reynolds was a member of the LDS Church, and was convicted of bigamy under the
Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act. He was secretary to
Brigham Young and presented himself as a test of the federal government's attempt to outlaw polygamy. The Court investigated the history of religious freedom in the United States and quoted a letter from
Thomas Jefferson in which he wrote that there was a distinction between religious belief and action that flowed from religious belief. The former "lies solely between man and his God," therefore "the legislative powers of the government reach actions only, and not opinions." The court considered that if polygamy was allowed, someone might eventually argue that human sacrifice was a necessary part of their religion, and "to permit this would be to make the professed doctrines of religious belief superior to the law of the land, and in effect to permit every citizen to become a law unto himself." The Court believed the First Amendment forbade Congress from legislating against opinion, but allowed it to legislate against action. Therefore, religious duty was not a suitable defense to a criminal indictment, religious activates could be regulated by law.
Religious tests The
No Religious Test Clause of the United States Constitution is found in
Article VI, paragraph 3. This has been interpreted to mean that no federal employee, whether elected or appointed, career or political, can be required to adhere to or accept any
religion or belief. However, some state and local jurisdictions have enacted legal restrictions that require a religious test as a qualification for holding public office. For instance in
Texas an official may be "excluded from holding office" if he or she does not "acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being." (i.e.
God),
Boston University and University of South Dakota Charges of religious and racial discrimination have also been found in the education system. In a recent example, the dormitory policies at
Boston University and The
University of South Dakota were charged with racial and religious discrimination when they forbade a university dormitory resident from
smudging while praying. The policy at The
University of South Dakota was later changed to permit students to pray while living in the university dorms. Another example concerns the Peralta Community College District which threatened to discipline two students when they prayed for a sick professor. The college later rescinded the warnings when threatened with a lawsuit.
Church of Jesus Christ–Christian In 2004, a case involving five
Ohio prison inmates (two followers of
Asatru, a minister of the
Church of Jesus Christ–Christian, a
Wiccan witch and a
Satanist) protesting denial of access to ceremonial items and opportunities for group worship was brought before the Supreme Court. The
Boston Globe reports on the 2005 decision of
Cutter v. Wilkinson in favour of the claimants as a notable case. Among the denied objects was instructions for runic writing requested by an Asatruer. Inmates of the "Intensive Management Unit" at
Washington State Penitentiary who are adherents of Asatru in 2001 were deprived of their
Thor's Hammer medallions. In 2007, a federal judge confirmed that Asatru adherents in US prisons have the right to possess a Thor's Hammer pendant. An inmate sued the Virginia Department of Corrections after he was denied it while members of other religions were allowed their medallions.
Merrill Lynch Religious discrimination has also been documented in employment in the United States, such as an
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) lawsuit alleging discrimination against an Iranian-Muslim employee by the Merrill Lynch company in the United States.
Cooke et al v. Colorado City, Town of et al On March 20, 2014, a jury hearing the case of
Cooke et al v. Colorado City, Town of et al ruled that the twin towns of
Colorado City and
Hildale had discriminated against Ronald and Jinjer Cooke because they were not members of the
Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS church). The Cookes were awarded $5.2 million for "religious discrimination". As a result of the ruling,
Arizona's Attorney General Tom Horne issued a press release stating that he "wants to eradicate discrimination in two polygamous towns" and believes that the court ruling will give him the tools to do it. ==See also==