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Public Square Protecting religious expression in the public square.
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Because religious exercise is natural to human beings, it is natural to human culture. It can, and should, have a place in the public square. Religious discussion and religious displays should not be treated as dangerous expression, scrubbed from our public discourse. Becket fights to assure free religious expression in the public square. We have successfully defended the right of students to voluntarily say the Pledge of Allegiance, and the right to display statues, crèches, and other items with religious messages in public.
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Public Square Cases
Use the simple filters to explore our cases in this practice area, or visit our Cases Page to search our entire database.
Frankel v. Regents of the University of California
In the wake of the terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, anti-Jewish protests emerged on college campuses nationwide. At UCLA, activists set up an encampment in the heart of campus where they enforced a “Jew Exclusion Zone,” segregating Jewish students ...
City of Grants Pass v. Johnson
A group of homeless people sued the city of Grants Pass, Oregon, in 2018 over local laws that penalize sleeping on public property. In 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled against Grants Pass, reasoning that its ...
Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski
Chike Uzuegbunam, a student at Georgia Gwinnett College, was threatened with arrest for peacefully sharing his Christian faith in a campus “free speech zone.” Chike sued the school for silencing the message that Chike and his friends wanted to share ...
Young Israel of Tampa v. Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority
In October 2020, Young Israel of Tampa, an Orthodox Jewish synagogue, submitted an ad to the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HART) seeking to advertise its annual celebration of Chanukah. HART rejected the ad because it was religious—and it has ...
Gloucester County v. G.G.
Title IX was enacted in 1972 to promote equality for men and women in education by prohibiting discrimination on the basis of “sex.” But in May 2016, the U.S. Department of Education unilaterally...
The Pledge of Allegiance Cases
For over a decade, Becket has successfully defended the words “one nation under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance. Why? Because the phrase “under God” answers one of the most important...
Woodring v. Jackson County
The Brownstown Area Ministerial Association is a coalition of Christian ministers in Jackson County, Indiana, that serves its community through prayer, fellowship, outreach, and direct aid. In 2003, BAMA purchased a nativity scene, with broad community support, to display in front ...
BLinC v. University of Iowa
Business Leaders in Christ (BLinC) is a Christian student organization at the University of Iowa whose mission is to form future business leaders who will integrate their religious values into the workplace. In October 2017, the University of Iowa targeted BLinC ...
InterVarsity Christian Fellowship v. University of Iowa
For 25 years, the InterVarsity Graduate Christian Fellowship student group at the University of Iowa has held Bible studies, hosted community discussions, and supported the wider community through acts of service. InterVarsity encourages and welcomes all students to be members, and ...
Rogers v. HHS
South Carolina provides numerous opportunities for foster families to help care for children in need. The state licenses families directly, serving families and children without regard to religion, race, disability, sex, or sexual orientation. The state also partners with a ...
Salazar v. Buono
In a case involving the constitutionality of a cross memorial in the Mojave Desert, Becket’s amicus brief argued that the court of appeals should be reversed, because the plaintiff lacked...
Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow
In March of 2000, atheist Michael Newdow sued on behalf of his daughter to strip the words “under God” from the Pledge recited by students in California public schools.Terence Cassidy represented...
Oakwood Adventist Academy vs. Alabama High School Athletic Association
Oakwood Adventist Academy teaches its students to excel without compromising their faith, on and off the court. When a basketball semi-finals game was scheduled for the Sabbath, the school asked if it could swap game times so that Oakwood students ...
Shurtleff v. City of Boston
The City of Boston allows community groups to hold flag-raising ceremonies and display flags of their choosing on one of the flagpoles near City Hall. After granting permits for nearly 300 different flag raisings, Boston issued its first permit denial in 2017 ...
Kennedy v. Bremerton School District
Coach Kennedy, a former high school football coach, was at the Supreme Court to defend his right to kneel in brief, quiet prayer at midfield after games. Becket filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case, arguing that religious expression is ...
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization
In 1973, the Supreme Court issued its ruling in the landmark abortion case, Roe v. Wade, reaching beyond the text of the Constitution to establish a right to abortion. Ever since, abortion advocates have waged proxy wars to expose and punish ...
Chahal v. Seamands
The United States Military Academy at West Point will now accommodate Sikh soldiers, allowing them to wear their essential articles of faith, after two young men persisted for the right to serve...
St. Vincent Catholic Charities v. Ingham County Board of Commissioners
For more than 40 years, St. Vincent Catholic Charities has been resettling refugee adults and families in the Lansing, Michigan area. St. Vincent helps refugees obtain housing, get needed medical care, find jobs, and build new lives safe from the dangers ...
Buck v. Gordon
Thousands of foster children nationwide are waiting for their forever family, but there are not enough families willing to foster and adopt. In Michigan, no one addresses this crisis more effectively than faith-based adoption agencies like St. Vincent Catholic Charities. ...
Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston v. HHS
Over 25,000 children are waiting for a forever family in the Texas foster care system. Motivated by their Catholic faith, the people of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston care for the poor, the widowed, and the immigrant. The Archdiocese would like to ...
Walker v. Texas Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans
Is a specialty license plate considered official government speech? And can the government restrict individual viewpoints even when they are highly offensive? To both questions, Becket said no. In 2009, the Texas Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans submitted a ...
Center for Inquiry v. Jones
Prisoners of Christ and Lamb of God Ministries have helped thousands of former prisoners get back on their feet. Although the state only covers a fraction of their costs, they serve at a financial loss because their faith calls them ...
Americans United for Separation of Church and State v. Prison Fellowship Ministries
Imagine thanking one of the most successful prisoner rehabilitation programs in the nation with a $1.5 million dollar plus fine. But a federal judge in Iowa, acting at the behest of the...
Sharonell Fulton, et al. v. City of Philadelphia
As dedicated foster parents, Sharonell Fulton and Toni Simms-Busch are heroes to countless kids. Between them, they have welcomed more than 45 foster kids into their loving homes—the majority of whom came from disadvantaged communities and experienced severe trauma. To ...
Newdow v. Rio Linda Union School District
In 2005, atheist activist Dr. Michael Newdow made another attempt to scrub the words “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance. Becket defended California public school parents and their children who wanted to continue voluntarily reciting the Pledge in school. In ...
Katsareas v. United States Navy
Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Leo Katsareas is a devout Muslim serving in the United States Navy. His Islamic faith requires that he wear a beard, and his patriotism compels him to serve his country in the Navy. When he ...
American Legion v. American Humanist Association
For more than 90 years, a war memorial in Bladensburg, Maryland, has stood as a reminder of the ultimate sacrifice made by local soldiers in World War I. Yet in 2014, the American Humanist Association (AHA) sued to remove the memorial simply ...
Freedom From Religion Foundation v. Lehigh County
Like many government seals and flags across America, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania’s seal includes a collection of images that reflect its history and culture. These images include—among other things—cement silos, textiles, and a farm, symbolizing significant aspects of ...
Kondrat’yev, et al v. City of Pensacola
In 1941, as the nation prepared to enter World War II, the citizens of Pensacola, Florida, gathered for prayer in a public park and erected a wooden cross. A cross has now stood on that site for over 75 years, and it ...
Bormuth v. County of Jackson, Michigan
In the County of Jackson, Michigan, Pagan activist Peter Bormuth tried to stop small-town county commissioners from continuing their tradition of voluntary prayer before their meetings. In 2017, Becket teamed up with leading religious liberty scholar and Stanford Law School Professor ...
Town of Greece v. Galloway
In the town of Greece, New York, legislative meetings are commenced with a prayer led by volunteers from a wide variety of faiths—from Catholics, Protestants, and Jews, to leaders from the Bahá’í and Wiccan traditions. This practice of legislative ...
Barker v. Conroy
In February 2015, Dan Barker, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, attempted to disrupt a 200-year-old tradition by requesting to open a legislative session of the House of Representative with a “non-prayer.” The House chaplain rejected his request because Barker ...
Singh v. Carter
Captain Simratpal “Simmer” Singh is a devout Sikh and decorated Army Captain who was forced to choose between serving his country and wearing the articles of his faith: his unshorn hair, beard, and turban. The Army gave over 100,000 soldiers medical ...
Caplan v. Town of Acton, Massachusetts
Would France let Notre Dame fall into ruin? Should India let the Taj Mahal crumble or England let Big Ben go into disrepair? Of course not. Historic structures enrich cities all over the world as...
Dumont v. Lyon
Nationwide, we face a crisis-level shortage of families willing to foster and adopt. But in 2017, the ACLU sued the State of Michigan to shut down its partnerships with faith-based foster and adoption agencies, putting at risk thousands of children who ...
New Doe Child # 1 v. The Congress of the United States (Sixth Circuit)
For years, atheist activist Michael Newdow has repeatedly attacked our national motto by suing the government, claiming that the phrase “In God we trust” violates the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). So far, his lawsuits have ...
Chabad of Key West v. FEMA
In the devastating wake of Hurricane Irma, houses of worship in hard-hit parts of Florida helped their communities get back on their feet by providing food and supplies to their communities. Houses of worship are more than just buildings, they ...
Harvest Family Church v. Federal Emergency Management Agency
In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in 2017, houses of worship across Texas opened their doors and welcomed thousands of families forced to evacuate their homes. Yet, at the same time they were opening their doors to the community, they were ...
Speaker v. Fields
In August 2016, a group of secular atheists sued the Pennsylvania State House in federal court for denying their request to lead daily prayers, claiming that it violated the Establishment Clause to bar a non-religious person from offering prayer. In August 2018, ...
Whole Woman’s Health v. Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops
In December 2016, Whole Woman’s Health, a group that runs abortion facilities around the country, sued over a Texas law that requires abortion facilities to bury or cremate aborted human remains. After the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops stood in ...
National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra
Government has no right to silence one side of any debate, let alone one as deeply important to people on all sides as abortion. But in 2015, California enacted the Freedom, Accountability, Comprehensive Care, and Transparency (FACT) Act, which targeted the ...
Freedom From Religion Foundation v. Weber
Since 1954, a statue of Jesus has stood atop a Montana ski slope as a monument to soldiers who died in World War II. But in February 2012, the FFRF sued to have the statue permanently removed because of its religious nature. ...
Gaylor v. Mnuchin
For over 60 years, federal law has allowed churches, mosques, and synagogues to give their ministers a “housing allowance” that is exempt from federal income tax. This helps religious leaders live in the communities they serve, and it keeps the IRS ...
New Doe Child # 1 v. United States of America (Eighth Circuit)
For years, atheist activist Michael Newdow has repeatedly attacked our national motto by suing the government, claiming that the phrase “In God we trust” violates the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). So far, his lawsuits have ...
Bauchman v. West High School
Every year West High School in Salt Lake City, Utah, held school concerts where students would perform a variety of songs that reflected the diversity of the community’s culture and heritage. In addition to secular songs, the music director ...
Hood v. Medford Township Board of Education
In 1996, Zachary Hood, a 1st grade student in Medford, New Jersey, chose to bring a children’s Bible to school to read aloud to his class. When his teacher told him that he could not read it because of its ...
ACLU of New Jersey v. Township of Wall
The Supreme Court has long upheld the right of local governments to display traditional holiday scenes containing both religious and secular symbols. Unfortunately, opposing groups have continued to...
Van Orden v. Perry
In an Establishment Clause challenge to a Ten Commandments display on the Texas State Capitol grounds, Becket’s amicus brief argued that such displays are constitutionally protected. The Supreme...
Pleasant Grove v. Summum
The city of Pleasant Grove, Utah included a Ten Commandments monument —along with other monuments—in its city park. A small religious group wanted to include its own religious monument in the same...
Newdow v. United States of America (Second Circuit)
God is not a dirty word. The Founders believed this and courts have continually upheld their view. Yet atheist activist Dr. Michael Newdow has sued again and again to scrub “God” from the public...