Legal

American Atheists Statement on Supreme Court’s Travel Ban Ruling

Cranford, NJ—In response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Trump v. Hawaii, which upheld President Trump’s executive action banning entry of foreign nationals from certain Muslim-majority countries, American Atheists interim executive director Ed Buckner released the following statement:...

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American Atheists Statement on Supreme Court’s Order in Arlene’s Flowers Case

Washington, DC—In an order today, the United States Supreme Court vacated lower court rulings in the case of a florist in the state of Washington who was ordered to comply with Washington’s non-discrimination law and to provide the same services to same-sex couples that she provides to heterosexual couples. The…...

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Atheists Denounce Supreme Court’s “Abdication of Responsibility” in Masterpiece Decision

Washington, DC—In a decision today in the Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission case, the Supreme Court sided with a Colorado baker who refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple in 2012....

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Lawsuit Against Texas School District Over Pledge Harassment and Bullying Moves Forward

Houston, TX—In an order yesterday, Chief Judge Lee Rosenthal in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas ruled that American Atheists’ lawsuit against Klein Independent School District (ISD) and a number of school employees could move forward, denying the defendants’ motions to dismiss. American Atheists is…...

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Atheists Urge Circuit Court to Stop Excluding Atheists from Congressional Invocation

Washington, DC—In a brief filed Monday, attorneys from American Atheists argue that the U.S. House of Representatives and House Chaplain Patrick Conroy unconstitutionally discriminated against atheists by imposing a religious test by refusing to allow an atheist minister to deliver an invocation to the U.S. House. The Center for Inquiry…...

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Atheists File Lawsuit After Child Forcibly Baptized by Court-Approved Mentor

Painesville, OH—American Atheists today filed a lawsuit in the Common Pleas Court of Lake County, Ohio, alleging that a developmentally disabled child was forcibly baptized against the expressed wishes of his parents by a minister and a court-approved “Big Brother” mentor....

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Atheist Groups Demand End to Coerced Prayer in U.S. Military

Washington, D.C.—American Atheists and the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) have sent a joint letter to the Defense Department warning against unconstitutional coerced religious observances in the military....

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FEMA Should Stay Out of the Church-Building Business

Washington, DC—Yesterday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that it would change its longstanding policies to allow taxpayer-funded grants to rebuild churches and other houses of worship damaged in natural disasters. This policy change would allow, for the first time, federal funds earmarked for disaster relief to be used…...

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