Racial Equality

Americans United: Supreme Court Protects Religious Freedom And Public Health In Maine Vaccination Case

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Americans United for Separation of Church and State President and CEO Rachel Laser issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s order today in Does 1-3 v. Janet Mills, a case involving a request for harmful religious exemptions from a Maine requirement that health care workers be vaccinated against COVID-19:

“The Supreme Court’s order upholds our country’s constitutional principle of church-state separation, which protects religious freedom for everyone and ensures we are all treated equally under the law. Religious freedom is not a right to risk other people’s lives, especially during a global pandemic that has already killed more than 700,000 people in the U.S. This order is in line with more than a century of court decisions that make clear the Constitution does not mandate religious exemptions from vaccination requirements.”

Americans United, joined by religious freedom and interfaith organizations, filed several amicus briefs in this case, including a brief filed Oct. 22 with the Supreme Court.

Americans United is a religious freedom advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, AU educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom. Learn more at www.au.org.

Americans United is a religious freedom advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, AU educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.

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