Advancing Religious Liberty
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Alliance Defending Freedom

Alliance Defending Freedom (formerly Alliance Defense Fund) is an alliance-building legal ministry that advocates for the right of people to freely live out their faith.

Posted 5/17/13 at 4:11 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom

Gosnell Case Exposes Big Abortion for What it Is

This opinion column originally appeared in ncregister.com on 5/17/2013.

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Casey Mattox

As the trial of Kermit Gosnell exposed to the world the evil, ugly and indefensible truth of Big Abortion, Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America (formerly National Abortion Rights Action League) were quick to throw him under the bus, applauding his conviction and implausibly blaming the pro-life community for Gosnell’s house of horrors.

But that moment of sanity by America’s biggest proponents of abortion won’t stop them from defending the gruesome practice of abortion.

Ilyse Hogue, NARAL’s president, deflected blame onto “anti-choice politicians,” claiming that their efforts to increase health-and-safety standards across the abortion industry will only “drive more women to back-alley butchers like Kermit Gosnell.” FULL POST

Posted 5/16/13 at 7:16 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom

Planned Parenthood and Big Abortion: Unpretty in Pink

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Litigation Counsel Catherine Glenn Foster

I’m thinking of getting my nails done this weekend. And I know that when I walk in, I will not be confronted with blood, urine, feces, and flea-infested animals.

What makes me so confident that I won’t get a disease from the beauty parlor?

As the Kermit Gosnell Grand Jury reported, “even nail salons…are monitored more closely for client safety” than abortion businesses.

When states do finally start to inspect abortionists, they find horrors like those in Gosnell’s operation. He was no back-alley abortionist wielding a coat hanger; he murdered living, breathing babies and women out in the open, and stored their bodies in jars, milk jugs, and cat food containers. He never bothered to hire licensed medical staff, relying instead on his beautician wife. His instruments were rusty and broken, and his hallways were so narrow that EMTs couldn’t get through to save his victims. FULL POST

Posted 5/15/13 at 7:33 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom |

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Religious Liberty Restored for Montana's Disabled Children of Faith

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Litigation Counsel Rory Gray

Some preschoolers in Montana got quite a shock late last year when they were told that the state’s department of education had cut tuition aid that they were promised under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) because they attend religious schools. You see, these particular students struggle with learning disabilities. So the federal government helps to ensure that they receive early schooling that prepares them to succeed in kindergarten. Because Montana does not provide a public preschool program, disabled students in that state attend private preschools or none at all. The family of one particular preschooler, N.W., who has hearing and speech impairments chose to place her in a Christian school that shared their religious beliefs and offered their daughter individualized services that had been highly successful in helping her adjust to a classroom environment. In fact, a local school district official had recognized—in writing—that N.W.’s school is a wonderful place with staff ready and willing to help students with special needs. FULL POST

Posted 5/15/13 at 7:28 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom

Your Support Secures Religious Freedom Wins on Campuses Coast to Coast

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom President, CEO, and General Counsel Alan Sears

Due in large part to the legal efforts made possible through the generous gifts and prayerful support of faithful friends like you, high school and college campuses across America are seeing a new birth of religious freedom. Three victories from the last few weeks illustrate the remarkable impact you’re enabling us to make:

In Cooperstown, North Dakota, Michayla Maertens joined other students in putting up posters along the halls of Griggs County Central High School, as part of a class assignment requiring them to actively advocate for a current health-related issue by taking some specific action, like creating and displaying items at school. Michayla’s poster took on the subject of abortion, and featured a collage of pro-life messages such as “Life Not Abortion.” FULL POST

Posted 5/14/13 at 7:36 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom

A Tale of Two Obamas: Still Waiting for Comment After Gosnell's Murder Conviction

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Litigation Counsel Catherine Glenn Foster

In February 2010, FBI agents finally raided the abortion business of Kermit Gosnell in search of drug violations. What they found was a massacre.

There was blood on the beds, floors, and charts, and aborted babies’ bodies were stored in jars, cat food containers, and a cherry limeade bottle as a kind of macabre trophy case. Gosnell used the same single-use-only supplies over and over, spreading STDs. Flea-infested cats roamed the building, which reeked of urine, death, and decay. FULL POST

Posted 5/14/13 at 3:50 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom |

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IRS Official: We are "Close" to Auditing Churches Again

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Legal Counsel Erik Stanley

For some time now, the IRS has not been auditing churches. As I explained in more detail in this post, the IRS’ decision to “suspend” church audits stems from a 2009 federal court decision finding the IRS’ regulations on church audits to be unlawful. Since that decision, the IRS, to the best of anyone’s knowledge, has not been auditing any churches. It has said since 2009 that it is preparing new regulations that will enable it to begin auditing churches again, but we have not seen those regulations finalized.

However, at a recent tax conference, Treasury Attorney-Advisor Ruth Madrigal said that the IRS’ long-awaited rules on church audits are “close” to being finalized. So what does this mean for churches? FULL POST

Posted 5/14/13 at 2:09 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom

Taking Back Free Speech on Campus

A pair of bold proclamations in professional sports perfectly define the double standard in which the right of free speech is viewed in popular culture today. Tim Tebow was often ridiculed for openly sharing his Christian lifestyle and told to keep it to himself. Jason Collins was declared a hero for declaring his homosexuality. What’s worse is that Christians have allowed this to happen.

“Announcing that you’re Christian is like announcing that you like cheeseburgers. Sure, there might be one or two people that will look down on you for eating meat, but on the whole, everyone loves cheeseburgers.” This statement, made by a believer, is a common sentiment among Christians today. Too many Christians in the U.S. don’t recognize that they are not the home team any more. Whether it is through “turn the other cheek” tolerance or simple complacency, believers have done little to shore up the slow erosion of their First Amendment Rights. FULL POST

Posted 5/13/13 at 4:11 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom

A Story of Belief and Repentance: Pro-Life Speech Back in North Dakota High School

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Legal Counsel Jon Scruggs

In a dramatic reversal, high school officials in North Dakota immediately changed their decision to censor a student’s pro-life message when they received a letter from Alliance Defending Freedom. This story of belief and repentance began when a student put up a pro-life poster in a school hallway as part of a health class assignment which called students to display posters and brochures about a health-related issue of their choosing. But when the pro-life poster went up, parents complained to the principal and on Facebook. Caving to these complaints, the principal then had the poster removed. Thankfully, the story doesn’t end there. Alliance Defending Freedom quickly informed the officials about their unconstitutional acts, and the very next day after receiving the letter, the officials agreed to apologize to the student and to return her pro-life poster to the hallway. FULL POST

Posted 5/13/13 at 2:10 PM | Alliance Defending Freedom

Churches and Conservative Groups Targeted by the IRS

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Legal Counsel Erik Stanley

The revelations about the IRS targeting conservative groups seem to keep coming. According to Fox News, the IRS targeting went broader than originally reported. Apparently, the IRS’ additional scrutiny “went beyond targeting ‘Tea Party’ and ‘patriot’ groups to include those focused on government spending, the Constitution and several other broad areas.”

Michigan representative Mike Rogers was on Fox News Sunday where he said: “The conclusion that the IRS came to is that they did have agents who were engaged in intimidation of political groups… I don’t care if you’re a conservative, a liberal, a Democrat or a Republican, this should send a chill up your spine. It needs to have a full investigation.” FULL POST

Posted 5/13/13 at 11:19 AM | Alliance Defending Freedom

IRS Apologies: More Apologies Necessary

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Legal Counsel Erik Stanley

The IRS recently apologized for targeting conservative groups with audits and investigations during the 2012 election. In some cases, the IRS asked about political affiliations, lists of donors, and family members’ activities. Apparently, the groups were targeted because they had the words “tea party” or “patriot” in their names. An IRS official apologized, saying, “That was wrong. That was absolutely incorrect, it was insensitive and it was inappropriate. That’s not how we go about selecting cases for further review… The IRS would like to apologize for that.”

What the IRS did here is unconstitutional. It is always outrageous when the coercive powers of government are used for political intimidation. And I am glad that the IRS has apologized for its actions. But this story illustrates the problem when we allow government agencies and officials to exercise unfettered power to enforce vague and ambiguous laws. FULL POST

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