In a move to counter recent changes in school textbooks approved by the Texas State Board of Education (Texas SBOE), Interfaith Alliance today sent a letter to top publishing companies urging them to reject the Texas standards and maintain the factual integrity of their textbooks that are utilized by the majority of school districts across the country. Since Texas is such a major client of textbook publishers, Interfaith Alliance is concerned that the Texas SOBE-approved edits would be included in textbooks used by other states as well.
“We do not take lightly the changes approved by the Texas SBOE, and at this point we are working to ensure that other children across the country are not taught an inaccurate history of our country,” said Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, president of Interfaith Alliance and author of the letter sent to the publishing companies. “…it simply is incorrect to state we are a Christian nation founded upon and governed by Christian beliefs. Unfortunately, this is just one of multiple inaccuracies that will now be included in Texas textbooks.”
Gaddy is referring to the many amendments voted on at a Texas SBOE meeting March 11, 2010. Along with the “Christian nation” language, a Christian conservative bloc of the Board also voted to incorporate the study of the right to bear arms (the Second Amendment) in the curriculum on First Amendment rights and free expression, and to remove Thomas Jefferson from the curriculum that covers the Enlightenment period. Equally as important as these votes, the Texas SBOE also struck down an amendment that articulated “the reasons the Founding Fathers protected religious freedom in America by barring government from promoting or disfavoring any particular religion above all others.” The Texas SBOE felt that the Founders did not intend for the nation to have separation of church and state.
“The Texas SBOE members certainly are entitled to believe whatever they want about our country and its history,” Gaddy continued. “The problem arises when their religious beliefs begin to essentially rewrite history for our children. Separation of church and state was a core tenet of our nation’s founding. Whether you like him or not, Thomas Jefferson was a leading thinker during the Enlightenment. It’s almost unfathomable to think that Texas schoolchildren won’t learn these basic facts now.”
In the letter sent to the publishing companies, Rev. Gaddy offers, “Should you need our support in resisting this pressure from the Texas SBOE to replace American history with conservative ideology, we would be honored to stand by you and support your commitment to the most accurate educational materials possible.” The edits to the Texas textbooks will be finalized by a vote of the Texas School Board of Education in May.
At the end of October, Interfaith Alliance witnessed President Obama sign the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crime Prevention Act into law. The Act provides law enforcement with additional resources to prevent hate crimes, bring their perpetrators to justice and better protect groups of Americans who are too often the targets of violence simply for being themselves.
While we savor this victory, we continue our efforts to develop new educational resources on the Act, and look ahead to our next challenge: the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) (H.R. 3017/S. 1584). While there are existing federal laws to prohibit discrimination in the workplace on the basis of race, religion, gender, national origin and disability, there are no federal laws that protect employees from discrimination on the basis of real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. In fact, in 30 states, an individual can be fired, refused a job, demoted or denied a promotion based on his or her sexual orientation. In 38 states, it is legal to do so because of an individual’s gender identity. ENDA would correct this egregious violation of civil rights and make such baseless discrimination illegal, ensuring that all Americans are judged solely on their qualifications and abilities in the workplace.
One of the central provisions of this bill, the religious exemption, releases religious organizations from the law’s requirements in the same way that religious organizations are exempted from other civil rights laws which enable them to hire individuals of the same religion. ENDA therefore simultaneously ensures that all Americans have equal access to jobs and promotions, and protects a house of worship’s right to favor prospective employees who share its religious convictions – provided they receive no federal money while doing so.
In early 2010, most likely after the spring recess which ends April 9, we expect the House of Representatives to vote on ENDA and we anticipate a vote in the Senate sometime in the spring. But Interfaith Alliance’s work continues behind the scenes, and you can help: urge your elected officials to support ENDA, if you haven’t already done so, and we’ll let you know when new opportunities for activism arise. We have also teamed up with a number of religious organizations to organize a letter to Congress from clergy members and faith leaders. If you, yourself, are a faith leader, please consider lending your signature. As Rev. Gaddy has said on numerous occasions, “a vibrant democracy guarantees the protection of civil rights for everybody with no exception for sexual orientation…Passage of a fully inclusive ENDA, with appropriate religious exemptions, will be a victory for democracy and cause for celebration among all who value religious freedom.”
The TIA web site now contains an excellent discussion paper on the difficult issue of same-sex marriage. Drawing on the often-overlooked distinction between the roles of religion and government, the paper sets forth a clear and logical approach to resolving this issue by recognizing the separate roles of each institution. It also identifies the basic principles upon which it is based. TIAR members are encouraged to go to the site, http://interfaithalliance.org/equality. There is also opportunity to comment and participate in the on-line discussion.
A message from The Rev. C.Welton Gaddy, President of TIA, 1/30/08:
If you saw President Bush's State of the Union address Monday night, you already know that the president is elevating the priority of his "faith-based initiative," which is just a euphemism for government-funded religious discrimination. Based on this administration's track record on religious liberty, The Interfaith Alliance believes the time has come to abolish the faith-based initiative once and for all.
Yesterday's New York Times includes an op-ed written by David Kuo and John DiIulio, two former White House officials who worked on the faith-based initiative. We have written a letter to the editor in response, and we wanted to share that message with you.
These two former Bush Administration officials are asking the American people to make a huge leap of faith. They claim that the faith-based initiative funding is appropriated in an above-board manner, so the program deserves more taxpayer dollars.
But that is not what the record demonstrates. In his tell-all book Tempting Faith, Mr. Kuo wrote that faith-based grant applications were supposed to be reviewed by a White House panel in a "religiously neutral fashion," but he admits the panel's ratings were "a farce" (p. 214). One panel member told Kuo: "When I saw one of those non-Christian groups in the set I was reviewing, I just stopped looking at them and gave them a zero [out of a possible 100]" (p. 215). Consequently, taxpayer dollars often went to Christian groups "with little more than a post office box" (p. 214).
And that is not the worst part of the story. No one knows the full extent of this religious discrimination because the faith-based initiative was set up to avoid congressional oversight.
The separation of religion and government is more than an academic debate; it has real consequences. In the world's most religiously diverse country, we cannot allow the government to favor certain religious groups over others. Nor can we allow taxpayer dollars to fund religious proselytizing.
David Kuo's past statements suggest the faith-based initiative engages in religious discrimination and is little more than a political stunt to appease evangelicals. But unlike Mr. Kuo, I don't believe we can afford to give this scheme another chance.
I hope you will support The Interfaith Alliance in our efforts to shut down the faith-based initiative
First Freedom First is a joint project of The Interfaith Alliance Foundation and Americans United for Separation of Church and State to raise public awareness and promote education about religious liberty and the separation of church and state. The project’s centerpiece is a petition that gathers national support for our constitutional right to make personal choices about what we believe. It focuses on eight major issues where our freedoms are threatened. With your support, Americans can strengthen our democratic values and renew our commitment to safeguarding the separation of church and state and protecting religious liberty. To find out more and to sign the petition, go to www.firstfreedomfirst.org.
We are committed to an inclusive democratic process based upon the mutual responsibility of public officials, public institutions, and the general public. It requires honest and civility through open discussion of issues and full participation open to all citizens.
We work towards a public good that offers dignity and wholeness to all people. This includes a quality public education, a sustainable environment, a living wage, comprehensive health care, adequate housing, and a voice for people of faith in the political arena that respects the First Amendment.
As a growing and diverse interfaith community, we bring a constructive and healing witness to public and political life in the Greater Rochester community. The Interfaith Alliance of Rochester is one of many local alliances in a national coalition of people of faith.
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