If the anti-lynching bill fails to include LGBTQ people, members of that community who are victims of these grotesque crimes and their families and friends who are seeking justice will be denied the powerful protection and resources that only the federal government can wield.

Religious Right groups did everything they could to help the Republican Party this year: They flooded churches with biased 'voter guides' that backed GOP candidates and pursued a 'data-driven strategy.' The Faith & Freedom Coalition, a group founded and run by former Christian Coalition operative Ralph Reed, boasted that it would spend $18 million to target 125 million 'social conservative voters' in 19 states.

The results of November’s midterm elections provided a welcome shot of adrenaline for church-state separation advocates battling ongoing attacks on religious freedom around the country.