American Civil Liberties Union

The right to practice religion, or no religion at all, is among the most fundamental of the freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. The ACLU works to ensure that this essential freedom is protected by keeping the government out of religion. Learn more about how the ACLU works to preserve Freedom of Religion and Belief and take action to protect the rights guaranteed to all Americans.

Religion and Belief : Government-Funded Religion : Legislative Documents

Coalition Letter to Senate regarding "Creation Science" Earmark (10/10/2007)
Dear Senator: We, the undersigned religious, civil rights, education, science, and advocacy organizations write to urge you to remove an earmark from the Fiscal Year 2008 Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriation Bill’s Committee Report. The Fund for Improvement of Education, under Title III, contains an earmark for uses that, if funded, would be blatantly unconstitutional. The earmark would fund curriculum that promotes teaching creationism in the science classroom, even though uniformly prohibited by federal courts.

SUPPORT BIPARTISAN REAUTHORIZATION OF HEAD START BY OPPOSING ANY ATTEMPT TO REPEAL THIRTY-FIVE YEAR OLD CIVIL RIGHTS PROVISION (04/20/2007)
We, the undersigned religious, civil rights, labor, education, health, and advocacy organizations urge you to support H.R. 1429, bipartisan legislation that would reauthorize the Head Start program, and to oppose any attempt to repeal longstanding critical civil rights protections. As reported out of the House Committee on Education and Labor on a 42-1 bipartisan vote, H.R. 1429 keeps in place a 35-year old civil rights provision that protects over 213,000 Head Start teachers and staff and over 1,360,000 parent volunteers from employment discrimination based on religion in federally-funded positions in Head Start programs.

Oppose Any Attempt to Repeal Longstanding Civil Rights Protections in Head Start (04/19/2007)
On behalf of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), the nation’s oldest, largest, and most diverse civil and human rights coalition, with more than 190 member organizations, we urge you to support H.R. 1429, the Improving Head Start Act of 2007, and oppose any attempt on the House floor to repeal longstanding civil rights protections in the Head Start Program that have been in place since President Nixon signed the law in 1972. We strongly oppose any language that would allow federally funded employment discrimination.* If language repealing civil rights protections is added to the bill either during consideration on the House floor or in the Motion to Recommit, we urge you to oppose final passage of the bill.

Jewish Council for Public Affairs Letter urging Opposition to the "Public Expression of Religion Act" (09/05/2006)

Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty Letter Urging Opposition to the "Public Expression of Religion Act" (09/05/2006)

ACLU Letter to the Senate Urging Opposition of (S. 3696) the Public Expressions of Religion Protection Act of 2006 (08/02/2006)

ACLU Letter to Congress Regarding the America's Opportunity Scholarship for Kids Act (07/27/2006)

Coalition Letter opposing the "Public Expression of Religion Act" (06/22/2006)

National Coalition for Public Education's Letter to the Senate Urging Opposition of School Vouchers (10/17/2005)

ACLU Chart Comparing the House and Senate Versions of the USA PATRIOT Act (09/22/2005)

Religious Organizations' Letter to Members of Congress Voicing Civil Rights Concerns With the Boehner Amendment (09/22/2005)

The Leadership Conference on Civil Rights' Letter to the House of Representatives Regarding Civil Rights Protections in the Head Start Program (09/21/2005)

National Head Start Association Letter to Reps. Boehner and Miller Regarding Civil Rights Concerns in the Head Start Reauthorization Bill (09/19/2005)

The Coalition Against Religious Discrimination's Letter to the House of Representatives Regarding Civil Rights Protections in the Head Start Program (09/19/2005)

The ACLU's Letter to the House of Representatives Regarding Civil Rights Protections in the Head Start Program (09/19/2005)