ADF to 1st Circuit: First Amendment allows religious schools to receive public benefits

The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Mark Lippelmann regarding a friend-of-the-court brief ADF attorneys filed Tuesday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit on behalf of five religious school associations in the case St. Dominic Academy v. Makin, in which a Catholic school in Maine has been excluded from the otherwise available state tuition program because of its religious character and exercise:

“When the government offers parents school choice, it cannot discriminate against religious education. The U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed this multiple times in cases like Trinity Lutheran Church of Colombia v. Comer and Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue. In fact, the Supreme Court previously ruled against the state of Maine for excluding religious schools from its tuition program. The American Association of Christian Schools, the Association of Christian Schools International, the Association for Biblical Higher Education, the International Alliance for Christian Education, and the Cardinal Newman Society all join as one voice with St. Dominic Academy in advocating for religious freedom that is consistent with First Amendment guarantees. We urge the 1st Circuit to uphold Supreme Court precedent that ensures religious schools can receive public benefits without being forced to give up their religious character or exercise.”

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.

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