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Full-Text Articles in Law
Reclaiming Establishment: Identity And The ‘Religious Equality Problem’, Faraz Sanei
Reclaiming Establishment: Identity And The ‘Religious Equality Problem’, Faraz Sanei
Faculty Scholarship
Since at least 2017, the Court has implicitly recognized a right of equal access to generally available public benefits based on the beneficiary's religious identity or status. In Carson v. Makin (2022), the Court went a step further and, for the first time, concluded that the “status-use distinction lacks a meaningful application” in both theory and practice. It then held that restrictions on the use of public benefits for sacral purposes amount to religious discrimination because they impose substantial burdens on free exercise rights. Carson's holding, and the rationale underlying it, contravene settled case law and effectively gut the Establishment …
Eagle Feathers And Equality: Lessons On Religious Exceptions From The Native American Experience, Kevin J. Worthen
Eagle Feathers And Equality: Lessons On Religious Exceptions From The Native American Experience, Kevin J. Worthen
Faculty Scholarship
The legality and propriety of exempting religiously motivated conduct from otherwise applicable legal norms is the subject of ongoing scholarly, judicial, and legislative debate. The issue is particularly thorny when it arises in a legal system deeply committed to the concept of equality. The Eagle Protection Act, which exempts Native Americans religious practitioners who are members of federally recognized tribes from its general prohibition on the taking and use of bald and golden eagle feathers, provides an interesting context in which to examine that debate. Not only does the Act exempt religiously motivated conduct from the otherwise applicable norms, it …