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Keep Religion Free in Your Community

Target: United States Senate
Sponsored by: Defcon - Campaign to Defend the Constitution

The Establishment Clause in the Bill of Rights is supposed to keep our government from interfering with religion, guard against the states' use of religion for political purposes, and ensure that the government does not act in a way that prefers one religion over another, so that we may all worship freely.

But while the Establishment Clause protects our basic freedoms, it is not self-enforcing. If someone is forced to sue the government to protect their constitutional rights, justice and fairness dictate they be able to recover their legal fees expended to do so.

The Public Expression of Religion Act would prevent citizens from recovering their litigation costs if they sue to stop state-sponsored religion. This law is brazenly designed to make it next to impossible for private citizens to sue to protect their First Amendment rights because lawsuits are prohibitively expensive.

In other words, Congress and the Religious Right want to cement the establishment of their own religion as dominant via the force of the government, and the force of law.

Tell your Senators that religious freedom is more important than the agenda of the religious right!

deadline: 10-31-2006
goal: 20,000

13,554
signatures!

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I am writing to express my deep concern over the Public Expression of Religion Act (PERA) and to urge you to vote against this proposal should it come up for a vote.

Under the guise of "religious freedom," PERA seeks to undermine the Establishment Clause, weakening our nation's commitment to the separation of church and state and actually threatening the religious freedom of millions of Americans.

Currently, citizens who win lawsuits challenging infringements of the Establishment Clause - such as Ten Commandment displays on government property and prayer in public schools - are able to receive reimbursement for the legal fees they collect in the process. This ensures that all Americans are free to challenge legitimate threats to the freedoms promised in the Constitution - and that this fundamental right will be extended to all Americans, not just those with the financial means to fund a legal challenge.

By ending this reimbursement, PERA would deal a massive blow to our nation's enlightened commitment to the separation of church and state.

Please put the religious freedom of all Americans above the interests of the religious right, and vote NO on this proposal.

Sincerely,
[Your name]
[Your address]

We signed the “Keep Religion Free in Your Community” petition!

# 13,400:

10:21 am PST, Jan 28, Peg Fikes, New York

# 13,399:

10:33 am PST, Jan 27, Dana Szemereta, North Carolina
you shouldnt be told what to believe in~ i am agnostic

# 13,398:

8:08 am PST, Jan 27, Name not displayed, Arizona

# 13,397:

9:27 pm PST, Jan 26, Kristen F., New York
Freedom of Religion is something that should not be compromised or made difficult to enforce.

# 13,396:

7:17 pm PST, Jan 26, Dakota Savage, California

# 13,395:

11:15 pm PST, Jan 24, Brenda Weeks, California

# 13,394:

7:37 am PST, Jan 24, Satyanarayana Dosapati, New Jersey
Religion is personal thing. Please do not create an atmosphere where one religion imposes on another.

# 13,393:

4:47 pm PST, Jan 23, Brian McGuire, Kansas

# 13,392:

1:10 pm PST, Jan 23, Pat Coyner, Nevada

# 13,391:

8:51 pm PST, Jan 22, Bianca Martinez, New Mexico

# 13,390:

7:15 pm PST, Jan 22, John And Loretta Page, Indiana
We encourage you as our elected official to help preserve the right of freedom of religion in our United States. Thank you for helping to keep our freedoms that hallmarked and shaped our land over two hundred years ago. Today. Freedom to speak about God and Christ in our churches, and colleges and at home is our highest freedom. John and Loretta Page

# 13,389:

2:31 am PST, Jan 21, George Yliev, Bulgaria

# 13,388:

6:31 pm PST, Jan 18, Denise Pugliese, New York

# 13,387:

10:56 am PST, Jan 18, Kristina Lane, Illinois
Read your history books. Our forefathers were christian men who designed our Declaration Of Independence and our Constitution to protect and defend our rights as humans to worship freely without persecution no matter our religion. Not to mention what has happened since we pulled our belief in God and Country out of our schools and homes? We have children shooting children over minor stupidities and adults wonder where these kids come up with these ideas. Do you know who, when, where your kid is and with and doing what? do you ever take the time to talk to them and implant some moral code of right and wrong in them? God is the only thing left and now you wish to take that as well? NEVER !!!

# 13,386:

11:06 pm PST, Jan 17, Crystal Scott, Oklahoma

# 13,385:

6:39 am PST, Jan 17, Tammy Lawson, Ohio
I am thankful that there is a day to celebrate our right to be a CHRISTIAN! And for you people who say Religion doesn't belong in Goverment or basis for our Laws well guess what,should they allow someone to walk in your house murder your family,rape your children,steal your car,because ye GOD said it best "THOU SHALT NOT KILL ,THOU SHALT STEAL and so on .So what laws can you non christian come up with?Who brought prayer?How did we get here ?I don't think The non-christian lead us.I am thankful for MY LORD!

# 13,384:

9:37 pm PST, Jan 16, Angie Hamilton, Virginia

# 13,383:

7:53 pm PST, Jan 16, Bobi Milner, Illinois

# 13,382:

9:18 am PST, Jan 16, Carolyn Hesse, Washington

# 13,381:

6:51 am PST, Jan 16, Holly Whitney, Maine

# 13,380:

9:15 am PST, Jan 15, Jereme Barnes, Illinois

# 13,379:

4:28 am PST, Jan 15, Misty Hodges, West Virginia

# 13,378:

8:03 pm PST, Jan 14, Faron Morgan, Nebraska

# 13,377:

7:56 am PST, Jan 14, Gary Sumpter, Missouri

# 13,376:

4:00 pm PST, Jan 13, Lorraine Ewart, Canada
Religion is part of Canada, the freedom to practice your own religion, whatever that is is part of the country.

# 13,375:

3:58 pm PST, Jan 12, Dominic Aubrey-Jones, United Kingdom

# 13,374:

12:12 pm PST, Jan 11, Dave Sennett, Pennsylvania

# 13,373:

7:02 am PST, Jan 11, Grethel Jane Rickman, North Carolina

# 13,372:

11:42 pm PST, Jan 10, Anna Shelton, Georgia

# 13,371:

3:08 am PST, Jan 10, Jamie Hein, Maryland

# 13,370:

7:16 pm PST, Jan 9, Patricia Burton, New York

# 13,369:

4:21 pm PST, Jan 8, Ayesha Isaac, New Jersey

# 13,368:

12:02 pm PST, Jan 8, Wesley Vincent, New Mexico

# 13,367:

1:27 pm PST, Jan 7, Bernice Bowman, Illinois

# 13,366:

9:06 pm PST, Jan 6, Roman Soiko, New Jersey
WE ARE ENTITILED TO OUR BELIEFS AND NO ONE SHOUD SUPERIMPOSE THEIR MOUNTAIN OF RELIGION TO ACHEIVE A POLITICAL POINT.

# 13,365:

4:07 pm PST, Jan 6, Terri Rosbon, Canada

# 13,364:

7:24 am PST, Jan 6, Andrea Leary, Florida

# 13,363:

9:42 am PST, Jan 5, Jim Ditton, Michigan

# 13,362:

6:20 am PST, Jan 5, Bohemian Triad, Texas

# 13,361:

1:12 am PST, Jan 5, Scott Cooper, Oregon
Institutionalized Religion is devoid of Spiritual essence...it's all about worship of the form..not the essence!

# 13,360:

12:49 pm PST, Jan 4, Amber Zahrobsky, Iowa

# 13,359:

9:46 pm PST, Jan 3, Urmila Shivaram, New York

# 13,358:

9:27 am PST, Jan 3, Myndi Wood, North Carolina

# 13,357:

3:27 am PST, Jan 3, Linda Harrington, Texas

# 13,356:

1:04 pm PST, Jan 2, Carol Harris, Iowa

# 13,355:

1:40 am PST, Jan 2, Becky Johnson, Indiana

# 13,354:

4:24 pm PST, Jan 1, Paul Samaha, Virginia
CHRISTIANS, MAKE YOUR VOICE BE HEARD! afa.net

# 13,353:

5:16 pm PST, Dec 31, Charlene Root, California

# 13,352:

2:01 pm PST, Dec 31, Gregory Kanter, Massachusetts

# 13,351:

3:26 pm PST, Dec 30, Wanda Sobieraj, Poland

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Keep Religion Free in Your Community

This petition has been closed.