Freedom of Religion
AMERICAN GOVERNMENT
As Stated
The first and fourteenth amendments set out two guarantees concerning religious freedom in
the United States
These guarantees prohibit:
◦ An establishment of religion (establishment clause)
◦ Any arbitrary interference by government in the free exercise of religion (free exercise clause)
Establishment and Free Exercise
According to Thomas Jefferson the establishment clause is:
◦ “a wall of separation between church and state”
Both the first and fourteenth amendment guarantees:
 “Each person has the right to believe whatever he or she chooses to believe in matters of religion
No law and no other action by any government can violate that absolute constitutional right”
There is a caveat to this though:
 No person has an absolute right to act as he or she chooses
▪ i.e. A person does not have the right to violate criminal laws, offend public morals, or other wise threaten the safety of the
community
Reynolds v. United States (1878)
In the court case of Reynolds v. United States, George Reynolds challenged the federal antibigamy statute
◦ Reynolds had been convicted in a Utah territorial court for taking a second wife
◦ This law was challenged on the basis that it violated the free exercise clause of the 1st amendment
http://www.oyez.org/cases/1851-1900/1878/1878_0
The Decision
In a unanimous decision, it was held that the anti-bigamy law did not violate the free exercise
clause of the 1st amendment
◦ The court held that the 1st amendment protected religious belief, not religious practice
◦ The court also stated that those who practice polygamy could be no more exempt from the law than
those who may wish to practice human sacrifice as part of their religious belief
Engle v. Vitale (1962)
In the 1962 case of Engle V. Vitale, the New York Board of Regents created a voluntary prayer
that students could recite. The prayer read:
◦ “Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee, and we beg, Thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers, and
our country”
◦ This prayer was challenged on the basis that it violated the establishment clause of the first amendment
http://www.oyez.org/cases/1960-1969/1961/1961_468/
The Decision
This court case outlawed the use, even on a voluntary basis, of this prayer
◦ The Supreme Court decision stated that:
◦ “it is no part of the business of government to compose official prayers for any group of the American people to recite as part of a
religious program carried on by government”
Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971)
This was a case involving a suit in which Pennsylvania state law required that financial payments
be made to private religious schools to cover their costs for teachers’ salaries, textbooks, and
other teaching materials in non-religious courses
◦ This law was challenged based upon the idea that the law violated the establishment clause of the 1st
amendment
http://www.oyez.org/cases/1970-1979/1970/1970_89
The Decision
 The Supreme Court ruled that the establishment clause is designed to:
 Prevent sponsorship, financial support, and active involvement of the sovereign in religious activity
 The court then setup the Lemon test, to verify where state aid was appropriate
 The test has three prongs which state:
 The purpose of the aid must be clearly secular not religious
 Its primary effect must neither advance nor inhibit religion
 It must avoid an excessive entanglement of government with religion
Santa Fe Independent School District v.
Doe (1999)
In this court case, the allowance of student led, voluntary prayer, at a public high school football
games was challenged.
◦ One Mormon and one Catholic family sued over the prayer, stating that it violated the establishment
clause of the first amendment
The Decision
In a 6-3 decision, it was determined that the District’s policy of allowing student-led prayer at
these public high school football games violated the establishment clause
◦ This was justified by the fact that the prayer was taking place on government property, at a
government-sponsored school-related event
Rights of Assembly
Under the 1st amendment, people are guaranteed the right of association, or gather with one
another to express their views on public matters
This amendment also protects peoples right to bring their views to the attention of public
officials
Limits
The right to assembly does have its limits though.
◦ Assembly must be peaceful.
◦ People do not have the right to incite violence
◦ To block public streets
◦ To close a school
◦ Endanger life, property or public order
NAACP v. Alabama (1958)
In 1958, the KKK tried to force the NAACP to turn over their membership list.
◦ Due to the nature of the KKK, it was determined that the KKK was trying to intimidate and dissuade the
lawful assembly of members of the NAACP
◦ It was decided that forcing the NAACP to turn over their membership list was an unconstitutional
restriction on freedom of association
http://www.oyez.org/cases/1950-1959/1957/1957_91/
Gregory v. Chicago (1969)
Protestors were arrested after peacefully protesting segregation and asking for the firing of the
school superintendent
◦ Police officers demanded that the protestors leave the public sidewalk and when protestors refused to
leave, the police arrested the protestors
◦ http://www.oyez.org/cases/1960-1969/1968/1968_60
The Decision
It was held that the protesters were arrested for having a demonstration and not
for violating the officers directives
◦ The decision stated that since the protest was peaceful and lawful, those who
participated could not be arrested
◦ Their right to demonstrate was upheld due to a citizens right to assemble under the first
amendment
Hecklers Veto◦ This act required that a fee be paid by the group who sponsored the main speaker of a
demonstration
◦ This was found to be unconstitutional during the Gregory V Chicago case