Jeff Sessions' 'religious liberty task force' part of a dangerous Christian nationalist campaign

[Major Nikon]

Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove Jeff Sessions' 'religious liberty task force' part of a dangerous Christian nationalist campaign of discrimination
Conservative Christians have convinced Trump that they are being oppressed. And LGBT Americans and religious minorities will pay the price.

In the Trump administration’s latest effort to deliver on promises to its base, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a new “religious liberty task force” at the Department of Justice. Sessions made the announcement at a Religious Liberty Summit, which was backed by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF). But a closer look at what Sessions and groups like the ADF mean when they talk about “religious liberty” makes clear how both religion and freedom are being redefined by this administration to serve an extreme agenda. It’s time for people who care about the future of democratic society to reclaim the concept of religious liberty.

Plenty of Americans still value the separation of church and state and, along with it, the establishment clause’s guarantee of freedom of conscience for all people. Outside the circles of the extreme right, religious liberty has long been a progressive value, celebrated by abolitionists, tax resisters, conscientious objectors and religious minorities alike. So long as an American respects the legal rights of his neighbor, the Constitution promises him the freedom to obey his own conscience when it comes to matters of religious conviction.

But when groups like the ADF talk about religious liberty, they are really talking about liberty for one specific religion — Christianity. In this context, the phrase has become a rallying cry for Christian conservatives whose religious and political interests align around issues like reversing Roe v. Wade and rolling back LGBT protections. Indeed, in their study “Make America Christian Again,” sociologists Andrew Whitehead, Samuel Baker, and Joseph Perry conclude, independent of other influences, Christian nationalism was the single most determinative indicator of support for candidate Donald Trump in the 2016.

Founded in 1994 as the Alliance Defense Fund, the ADF is a legal advocacy and organizing coalition for Christian nationalists that has been aggressive in pushing for a decidedly unequal definition of religious liberty. The ADF believes not only that America was founded as a Christian nation, but also that religious conservatives like themselves must save America from moral decline. Sessions and the Trump administration’s ties to the ADF are well-known — in 2017, Sessions consulted the ADF while drafting new DOJ guidance on how to interpret federal religious liberty protections.

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https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/jeff-sessions-religious-liberty-task-force-part-dangerous-christian-nationalist-ncna895941

[Crutchez_CuiBono]

1. Jesus is pissing me off...esp when Jesus is THE LAST PERSON they emulate.

The new mantra now is, no one can ever be as good as Jesus, and it's a sacrilege to even try to approximate him. it's gone off the rails.

[trixie2]

2. Jesus Christ!

Pun intended. Scary.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Why is it that the only people entitled to religious liberty are fundamentalist Christians?

That's a rhetorical question, of course. But if you're a Muslim or a Hindu or a Jew, good luck getting Sessions' folks to stick up for your right to religious liberty.

[RKP5637]

4. Jesus Christ, I really hate these people! Selfish pin headed assholes. n/t

[J_William_Ryan]

5. This is true rightwing idiocy.

Protecting a woman's right to privacy or the right of gay and transgender Americans to equal protection of the law from attack by Christian conservatives doesn't "violate" the religious liberty of those Christian conservatives.

This is a ridiculous waste of time and money, and an inane non issue.