Our friends at Freedom from Religion Foundation have a long history of helping local secular groups counter Christian displays on government properties. Last year, a nativity banner was displayed on the AZ Capitol lawn. This year, FFRF’s local chapter wants to respond! Their plan is to display a banner like the one above for four days: December 21st-24th. Secular AZ is lending its support as a partner in the project. Continue reading
Secular AZ attorneys helped shut down an illegal campaign event planned to be held at a public school last week by right wing gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and GOP Senate hopeful Jim Lamon. Continue reading
Do you support secular public policy in Arizona? Meet Arizonans that share your beliefs and be part of the discussion how Secular AZ will fight for them in 2022!
The event will feature a keynote address from US Rep. Jamie Raskin: chair of the Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, co-chair/co-founder of the Congressional Freethought Caucus, and lead impeachment manager for the second impeachment of President Donald Trump!
Secular AZ leadership will report on how we’ve been fighting for your rights this year; recognize outstanding secular activists and leaders; and discuss what we can look forward to in 2022.
We’ll also hear from sitting school board member Lindsay Love on the subject of Christian nationalism at schools, and a panel of experts that will discuss medical refusals, including:
This event is usually members-only, but is being opened up to the general public this year! (That said, we encourage you to join Secular AZ at secularaz.org). We also deeply appreciate donations to help pay for speaker fees and ongoing organizational costs. Be recognized as an event sponsor by kicking in $100 or more!
At the October 27, 2021 Chandler Unified School District (CUSD) Governing Board meeting, several speakers gave public comments regarding mask wearing in schools. While this topic wasn’t up for vote or discussion on the agenda, such comments from community members have become a regular occurrence in CUSD, and the angry, anti-science, antisemitic rhetoric coming from these individuals has increased since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Continue reading
Do you support separation of church and state in Arizona? Meet others who do, hear from experts, and be part of organizing for 2022!
If you’ve been following us, you may already know that it’s common in Arizona for lawmakers to open government meetings with a prayer. Inadvertently or intentionally, many of these invocations have the effect of marginalizing religious minorities and even violating constitutional law. Continue reading
Secular AZ is proud to introduce you to our new Executive Director, Jeanne Casteen! Among other things, Jeanne has been a lifelong educator and advocate, mother of four, middle and high school teacher, and school board president. We’re excited to benefit from her strength, ideas, and experience. Below, meet Jeanne in her own words.
by Beth Houck, Secular AZ Legal Committee volunteer attorney
This summer, Secular AZ’s Legal Committee has been reviewing the invocation policies and practices in every county’s board of supervisors’ meetings, and in the city council meetings of the cities that are county seats. It’s a big project, requiring many public records requests and listening to hundreds of hundreds of recordings going back to the beginning of 2020. Continue reading
Secular AZ is seeking candidates for an Executive Director position.
Since 2010, Secular AZ has been working to ensure that Arizonans have a secular state government by educating lawmakers and the public about the importance of secular issues. We advocate on behalf of all individuals, including the nontheistic community, who believe that public policy free of religious preference is the best way to ensure freedom of conscience for Arizonans of all faiths and of none. Continue reading
By Adriana Lujan-Flores, Secular AZ Legal Intern
On January 31, 2019, British-Iraqi journalist Salam Sarhan wrote an opinion piece for The Independent calling for a new, international approach to prevent countries from using religion for political purposes. According to Sarhan, previous attempts to combat the political use of religion were too divisive and confrontational, enabling religious extremists to rally support by claiming their faith was being attacked. The article received significant support, leading to the launch of the International Treaty to Ban the Political Use of Religion, or BPUR for short. Continue reading
By Matthew Adler, Secular AZ legal intern
In a recent unanimous decision, the Supreme Court held that government officials may be sued in a personal capacity for money damages when they violate the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). This decision was a step towards providing much needed justice to a group of Muslim men who had been victimized by the FBI following 9/11, but it also served to strengthen a highly dubious piece of legislation that is routinely used to circumvent the law. Continue reading
On short notice, religious exemptions bill HB2648 has been fast-tracked for final votes at the State Legislature today.
Proponents of HB2648 claim that the bill merely protects the right to worship during public emergencies. But the bill is much more extreme.
As written, HB2648 would essentially give any self-proclaimed religious organization — including extremist and fringe organizations — a “get out of jail free” card for nearly any violation of any law at any time. This would particularly jeopardize children, as it would diminish Arizona’s ability to enforce laws shielding them from abuse and other harms within the walls of such organizations.
HB2648 is not only dangerous. It is unnecessary. Current Arizona law already protects religious freedom, even in times of crisis.
The bill could receive final votes in the Senate any minute. From there, it would go to quickly to the House and then the Governor.
Please join us in contacting our State Senators (again) ASAP.
