Attorney General Todd Blanche, recently confirmed, has quickly established a focus on religious liberty and parental rights. On July 23, he introduced updated guidance for federal agencies concerning religious liberty protections. This guidance asks agencies to adhere to the Constitution and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, avoiding future legal disputes.
One key instruction highlights that agencies should also recognize precedent ensuring that the Constitution protects parents’ rights to guide their children’s upbringing. This marks a significant declaration, considering previous focuses of the Civil Rights Division on family-related matters.
Historically, the Civil Rights Division concentrated on initiatives like the FACE Act, enacted in 1994, which the Biden administration used to target political dissenters. This raised national interest in cases like Mark Houck’s, a Pennsylvania father whose home faced a raid over an incident defending his son. Though a jury cleared him swiftly, he was compensated thanks to questionable enforcement predicated on interest groups’ tips.
Furthermore, the Department’s preference for aligning with particular groups often led to oversight in ensuring impartial application of the FACE Act. Originally, the Act’s other provisions aimed to protect places of worship and pregnancy centers, which the Justice Department largely neglected, especially post-Dobbs leak incidents of vandalism. The current administration, under Blanche, has started to enforce these provisions, bringing balance to the law’s application.
Blanche’s directive is part of broader departmental moves, including the office of the Solicitor General filing an amicus brief in St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy, challenging Colorado’s exclusion of Catholic preschools from its preschool programs based on religious teachings. This move is noteworthy, reflecting the department’s commitment to significant cases.
Another crucial case, Mahmoud v. Taylor, underscored parents’ rights to exclude their children from specific classroom content. The dedication of resources previously used against sidewalk counseling of potential parents may see redistribution aligning with Blanche’s directions.
The acknowledgment of parental rights aligned with constitutional liberties signifies a shift toward recognizing parents’ authority to raise their children in line with personal convictions. Andrea Picciotti-Bayer, director of the Conscience Project and a former civil rights attorney, underscores the importance of these changes.