This year’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade is back in New York City’s Staten Island after being canceled in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, this also means another year trying to get approval to join the parade.
On January 19, a Tennessee couple sued the Department of Children's Services after an adoption agency refused to facilitate their adoption because they are Jewish. Elizabeth and Gabriel Rutan-Ram said they were denied state-mandated training and certification because of their religion.
On Sunday, February 13, the attendance at the Global Vision Bible Church in Tennessee heard a bizarre closing to their service. When the service was about to end, the church’s pastor, Rev. Greg Locke, began telling his church about the witches amongst them.
A Catholic priest in Arizona resigned effective February 1 after discovering that the baptisms he had administered were invalid. In his letter addressed to his community, Rev. Andres Arango said he is saddened to learn that he has performed invalid baptisms. According to Arango, he had used an incorrect “formula” when administering baptisms.
On Wednesday, February 9, more than a hundred students walked out during their homeroom period at West Virginia’s Huntington High School. The students were protesting a Christian revival assembly where some students were obliged to attend by their teachers.
The students chanted "separate the church and state" and "my faith, my choice” during the walkout.
Rob Standridge, a Republican Senator from Oklahoma, has introduced a stupefyingly callous, religiously inspired bill to the Oklahoma senate. Known as the Students' Religious Belief Protection Act, the bill seeks to penalize educators who oppose students' "closely held religious beliefs."
On January 20, the city school district of Lebanon, Ohio, released a statement in response to a group of parents concerned over the After-School Satan Club meeting. According to a school official, the club’s organizers were able to complete the “required application, the facility use agreement, and provided the necessary documentation, and were approved.”
On Saturday, January 29, 2022, advocates worldwide will be holding the 11th Annual International Day of Protest Against Hereditary Religion. One of the goals of the annual protests is to raise awareness about the handicap of forcing religion on children.
On January 21, 2022, the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) posted an open letter in opposition to the California State University (CSU) system adding caste to their anti-discrimination policy and demanding its removal.
California State University (CSU) has become the first university system in the US to add caste to its anti-discrimination policy. This decision will be impactful as there are 23 campuses across the state that are part of this system.
