'When health experts and public officials determine that large gatherings must be cancelled for the public good, we must follow their lead and apply these guidelines to secular and religious gatherings equally. The Constitution not only permits it, but demands it," said AU President and CEO Rachel Laser. "Such restrictions do not violate religious freedom; they ensure religious freedom is not misused in ways that risk people’s lives."

Tennessee includes many varieties of Christians but also non-Christians and non-believers as well. The government can best respect all of their rights by refraining from elevating a text that some (but by no means all) Tennesseans regard as sacred above all others.

The very first thing the Tennessee Senate did when it reconvened last week was pass a bill to allow discrimination that would harm children in foster care. HB 836, passed by the House last year, would authorize taxpayer-funded foster care agencies to turn away couples seeking to foster or adopt children because they are LGBTQ or the “wrong” religion.