Did you know? When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Joe Kennedy, the high school football coach who fought for his right to pray after games, they overturned a decision that had long restricted religious expression in public schools. This was a historically significant ruling that restores the civil rights of teachers, coaches and employees across America to live out their faith and pray on a public school campus. In its opinion in Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, the Court wrote that:
“[r]espect for religious expressions is indispensable to life in a free and diverse Republic—whether those expressions take place in a sanctuary or on a field, and whether they manifest through the spoken word or a bowed head.”
Coach Kennedy, the Court opined, was pursued by the government:
“for engaging in a brief, quiet, personal religious observance doubly protected by the Free Exercise and Free Speech Clauses.”
The Court also pointed out that Coach Kennedy had observed this tradition for years and did not force any of his players to join him. More importantly, he made sure his team knew it was optional, and did not play favorites to those athletes that decided to partake in his prayer. All Kennedy wanted to do was retain his position as head coach while freely exercising his religious beliefs. The Court pointed out that, “‘[o]ffense does not equate to coercion.’”
In issuing this decision on June 27th this year, the Court has finally overturned what was known as the Lemon test. The test, named after the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971), which allowed for anti-religious people to claim they are “offended” by a religious display, then sue for redress of grievance in court. The test caused many school administrators to mistakenly believe they had an obligation to suppress religious observances, often leading them to violate the rights of teachers and students. This was exasperated by left-wing groups like the ACLU, People for the American Way and the Freedom from Religion Foundation who intentionally threatened lawsuits on behalf of activists.
By overturning Lemon in the Kennedy case, the Court re-established the Constitutional principle that the government cannot prohibit or punish private religious expression.
Watch and listen to First Liberty President, CEO and Chief Counsel Kelly Shackelford, in the video below as he passionately explains why Lemon was so detrimental to religious freedom and why it is so important to spread the word (especially to pastors and church leaders) now that it’s finally been overturned.
Want to learn more? Listen to this First Liberty podcast from June in which Chief Counsel Shackelford and General Executive Counsel Hiram Sasser discuss this victory at the U.S. Supreme Court: Click HERE.
