Chelsey Nelson Photography, LLC v. Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government (U.S.C.A., 6th Circuit, 2023)
Amicus Brief
At issue in this case is a wedding photographer who seeks a religious exemption to Louisville's anti-discrimination ordinance for the purpose of denying wedding-related services to same-sex couples. ADL joined 14 other faith-based organizations in a brief led by Americans United for Separation of Church and State. The brief argues that the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment does not require granting the photographer a religious exemption to this neutral, generally…
This discussion guide about the musical Parade will help middle and high school students and adults reflect upon and discuss the themes and artistic elements of Parade.
ADL Condemns Supreme Court Decision Undermining Separation of Church and State
Press Release
New York, NY, June 27, 2022 ... ADL (the Anti-Defamation League) is deeply disturbed by today's Supreme Court decision undermining the separation of church and state enshrined in the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
“This is a significant change in how we approach prayer in public schools, and one that will have a negative impact in particular on students of marginalized faiths and non-religious students,” said Rachel Robbins, Chair of ADL’s Civil Rights…
Kennedy v. Bremerton School District (U.S. Supreme Court, 2022)
Amicus Brief
This case involves a public high school football coach who filed a lawsuit claiming religious discrimination under the Free Exercise Clause and employment discrimination laws after he was fired for refusing to stop kneeling in prayer at the football field's 50-yard line immediately following every game. This practice started after the school district directed him to stop leading his team in pre- and post-game prayer, which the coach had done for eight years prior. The lower courts repeatedly…
At issue in this case is a free exercise challenge to a Maine secondary school tuition assistance program. To provide for high school education in over half of the State’s school districts that do not have public secondary schools, Maine pays for students to attend public or private schools which provide secular education, including religiously affiliated schools that do not indoctrinate religion. The lawsuit was brought by parents seeking to send their children to religious schools. ADL…
Crisitello v. St. Theresa School (Supreme Court of New Jersey, 2021)
Amicus Brief
At issue in this case is the application of the First Amendment’s ministerial employee exception to an art teacher at a religious elementary school. Grounded in constitutionally mandated separation of church and state, the exception exempts religious institutions from all employment discrimination laws for employees deemed to be ministerial. A lower state court ruled that the teacher, who performed no “vital religious duties,” could move forward with her pregnancy and marital…
The phrase “You Will Not Replace Us” is a white supremacist slogan referring to the common White supremacist belief that the white race is in danger of going extinct due to rising numbers of non-White people who are controlled and manipulated by Jews. It may also be seen in acronym form as YWNRU.
The phrase “We Wuz Kangs” is a racist term meant to attack African-Americans by racist mockery of Afrocentric theories about Egyptian connections to sub-Saharan Africa.
The phrase “The Goyim Know” is an antisemitic phrase portraying the ostensible reaction of Jews when their supposedly conspiratorial or manipulative misdeeds are revealed to the public. Often combined with “Shut It Down.”
“Six Gorillion” is an antisemitic phrase used by white supremacists to refer to the Jews who died during the Holocaust (typically thought to be around six million). They replace “million” with “gorillion” to give the impression that Jews wildly exaggerate Holocaust-related deaths.
“Muh Holocaust” is an antisemitic phrase popular with the alt right used to convey the bigoted notion that Jews routinely bring up the Holocaust to gain attention or to deflect negative attention.
“It’s okay to be white” is a slogan popularized on the website 4chan in 2017 for trolling purposes and which was soon adopted by white supremacists (who had occasionally used the phrase themselves in the past).
“Day of the Rope” is a white supremacist slogan referring to mass murders of “race traitors” that occur in The Turner Diaries, a novel written by neo-Nazi William Pierce. The slogan is typically used to urge or promise some similar scenario in the real world.
“Anudda Shoah” is an antisemitic phrase used by white supremacists to mock Jews, whom they claim bring up the Holocaust when confronted with anything they don’t like.
“White Lives Matter” is both a white supremacist slogan adopted after the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement as well as a loose movement of white supremacists who hold events to popularize the phrase.