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Religious Civil Liberties Amicus The various religious and civil liberties organizations joining this brief represent a range of religious denominations, liberals and conservatives (religious and nonreligious). They include American Jewish Committee, American Jewish Congress, Association on American Indian Affairs, Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, Hindu American Foundation, Liberty Counsel, Unitarian Universalist Association, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, The General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Jewish Prisoner Services International, People For the American Way, The Seventh-day Adventist Church State Council, The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. Though this group includes members who often find themselves on opposite sides of Establishment Clause and federalism issues, they speak with one voice in the conviction that accommodating religious exercise by removing government-imposed substantial burdens on religious exercise is an essential element of a democratic society. The constitutionality of RFRA as applied to the federal government lies beyond the scope of the certified question, has not been decided by the courts below, has not been briefed by the parties, and has not divided the Courts of Appeals. All of these factors weigh against taking up the issue in this case, and the special circumstances asserted by the Tort Committees weigh little or nothing in favor. But if this Court were to reach the Tort Committees' challenges, it should reject them all. Excerpt from the Amicus brief, for a complete copy of this document click here. |
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