Submissions are now being accepted for Americans United’s annual Student Essay Contest.
The contest is open to high school juniors and seniors. The deadline for submission is 11:59 p.m. ET April 19, 2021.
This year, students are being asked to address the following topic: How would the Do No Harm Act impact church-state separation and the real lives of people in the United States?
The Do No Harm Act is designed to restore the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) to its original intent to protect religious freedom, especially for religious minorities, while clarifying that it cannot be used to discriminate. RFRA is now being misused to harm others; for example, the Trump administration directed that organizations may use RFRA to discriminate in employment for jobs funded by taxpayer dollars.
The Do No Harm Act will make sure that RFRA cannot be used to harm people, particularly LGBTQ people, religious minorities, women and others, by undermining nondiscrimination laws, circumventing child labor laws, refusing to perform job-required tasks as a government employee, denying access to health care, overriding workplace laws and refusing to provide contract-mandated government-funded services.
Students who wish to enter should keep in mind the following:
The contest is open to high school juniors and seniors in the United States including the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. territories.
The essay length should be between 750 and 1,000 words.
Writing should be clear, creative and properly proofread; demonstrate genuine grappling with the topic; and be the student’s original writing.
Submissions should make persuasive arguments supported by specific examples and/or properly cited sources where appropriate. Essays may reference personal experiences, current events, legal cases, U.S. history, primary sources and information from AU.org.
Information about how to submit can be found at www.au.org/essay contest.
The first-place winner will receive $1,500, and the essay will be printed on AU’s website and in Church & State. The second- and third-place winners will receive $1,000 and $500, respectively, and both essays will be printed on AU’s website.
