For Immediate Release
Contact: Roy Speckhardt, rspeckhardt@americanhumanist.org, 202-238-9088 ext. 109
(Washington, DC, September 29, 2020)—To defend First Amendment liberties, the American Humanist Association (AHA) filed a friend of the court brief supporting Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF)’s case, Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski, at the U.S. Supreme Court. “Now is the time to instill confidence in an anxious America and celebrate a constitutional heritage strong enough to unite the likes of the AHA and ADF,” AHA Legal Director and Senior Counsel Monica Miller wrote in the brief, acknowledging the heightened feelings of uncertainty regarding the high court and the future of constitutional law.
In its amicus brief, the AHA urges the Supreme Court to overturn the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit’s ruling that leaves many victims of First Amendment violations remediless. Five judges on the Eleventh Circuit agreed in dissent that under the Eleventh Circuit’s recent opinions, “the government gets one free pass at violating your constitutional rights.”
ADF filed the case on behalf of two former college students seeking vindication of their First Amendment rights. The AHA previously filed an amicus brief at the first stage at which the Supreme Court deliberated whether to take the case. The Court decided to take the case on July 9. Oral argument is expected to be heard later this term.
This case has implications for several cases pending in the Eleventh Circuit including the AHA’s victory against the Ocala Police Department.
AHA Executive Director Roy Speckhardt added: “People need to be given every chance to preserve their First Amendment rights. While the AHA and ADF may approach the Constitution from different angles, at the very least we agree that First Amendment litigation and the associated rights are essential to our democracy.”
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The American Humanist Association (AHA) works to protect the rights of humanists, atheists, and other nontheistic Americans. The AHA advances the ethical and life-affirming worldview of humanism, which—without beliefs in gods or other supernatural forces—encourages individuals to live informed and meaningful lives that aspire to the greater good of humanity.
Humanism is a progressive philosophy of life that, without theism, affirms a responsibility to lead ethical lives of value to self and humanity.
Special thanks to the Louis J. Appignani Foundation for their support of the Appignani Humanist Legal Center.