A Push for Religious Liberty for the Air Force in Congress

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By USDR

Today, bipartisan members of the House of Representatives submitted a letter to U.S. Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James, urging a revision to Air Force regulations to allow greater religious freedom in the Air Force. To read the letter online, please follow this link: http://libertyinstitute.org/document.doc?id=148

The joint letter states: “We are concerned that the Air Force has not updated its regulations on religious freedom and appears to have the most restrictive policy of any military service.” In addition, it expresses concern that “Air Force religious freedom regulations and practices are inconsistent with the Constitution and with current law.” The letter also demands that the Air Force “correct this immediately” by revising Air Force regulations to ensure that the Air Force protects the religious freedom of all Airmen.

Mike Berry, Liberty Institute Senior Counsel and Director of Military Affairs, praised the policymakers’ initiative. “We are grateful that our elected officials responded so quickly and decisively to this issue,” he said. “They are rightfully concerned that the Air Force is not acting in accordance with Department of Defense policy. History demonstrates that religious freedom is vital to a strong military. With this letter, Congress is asking the Air Force to protect religious freedom in accordance with the Constitution and Department of Defense policy, which will ensure that we continue to have a strong military.”

Recently, the Air Force has been at the center of numerous controversies related to religious hostility within the military. Liberty Institute compiled many of those instances of religious hostility and, in January, provided them to the House Armed Services Committee as part of its written testimony.

Liberty Institute is a national law firm dedicated to defending and restoring religious liberty across America — in our schools, for our churches, in our military and throughout the public arena. Liberty’s vision is to reestablish religious liberty in accordance with the principles of our Founding Fathers. For information, visit www.LibertyInstitute.org.