Religion

Two Moms, a Bible Class, and a Very Ugly Lawsuit

Two moms in Mercer County, West Virginia, have sued a public school district for offering a voluntary Bible course for elementary and middle school students. The school district has offered Bible classes for over 75 years, according to the nonprofit Freedom From Religion Foundation, a church/state “watchdog” based in Madison, Wisconsin. Atheist parent “Jane Doe” and her kindergarten child …


New York Joins Lawsuit Against Trump’s Revised Travel Ban

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman says the state will join Washington state’s lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s new travel ban. Schneiderman said in a statement Thursday that Trump’s new executive order is “a Muslim ban by another name.” The Trump administration says the temporary restrictions are needed to keep Americans safe. “This is dialed back, …


Lawsuit Over School Bible Class Moves Forward

A West Virginia school district is fighting back against the claim that a Bible study class offered in some public schools violates the First Amendment. The Freedom From Religion Foundation filed a lawsuit last month against the Mercer County, West Virginia Board of Education, Mercer County Schools and Superintendent Dr. Deborah Akers, seeking to end the county’s Bible In The …


New Lawsuit Challenges “Bible in Schools” Program in West Virginia

A new lawsuit filed by the Freedom From Religion Foundation claims a longstanding public school program in Mercer County, West Virginia, violates separation of church and state provisions of the federal and state constitutions. Mercer’s “Bible in Schools” program offers weekly instruction in the Bible during the school day to elementary and middle school students. The …


Muslim Discrimination: Edible Arrangements Founder Kamran Farid Denied Membership to Connecticut Yacht Club

The co-founder of fruit basket company Edible Arrangements has filed a lawsuit against a prestigious yacht club in Branford, Connecticut, claiming he was denied full membership because of his race, religion and country of origin. Kamran Farid, who was born in Pakistan but moved to the U.S. when he was a toddler, is Muslim. Farid, along with his wife Kara, filed the lawsuit last week against …


San Antonio Atheist Drops Lawsuit Over ‘tallest Cross in America’

An atheist activist on Tuesday reached a court-approved settlement to drop a lawsuit against a Corpus Christi, Texas, church planning to erect a 230-foot-tall cross. Patrick Greene said in the settlement his legal complaint against Pastor Rick Milby of Abundant Life Fellowship Church was “baseless,” “vexatious” and “without merit.” “We are grateful that Mr. Greene has admitted that his lawsuit …