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Date: September 17, 2005
TAMPA, FL - Less than a
year after becoming the first Hindu American group to file
an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief with the United
States Supreme Court, the Hindu American Foundation (HAF)
continued its legal campaign with another brief in support
of a petition for writ of certiorari. The case, Simpson v.
Chesterfield County, involves legislative prayer. While the
HAF's first brief opposing a Ten Commandments display on public
grounds in Texas was already scheduled to be heard by the
Supreme Court, a writ of certiorari is a request to the Court
to review a case.
"References to Hinduism
and Hindu Americans, written on behalf of practicing Hindus,
finally appeared in the annals of Supreme Court jurisprudence
with our brief last year," said Suhag Shukla, Esq., legal
counsel for HAF. "We believe the issues raised in this second
brief are of even greater importance to not only Hindu Americans,
but all Americans."
The latest HAF brief was
co-signed by the Buddhist Peace Fellowship, Association of
American Indian Affairs as well as the Interfaith Alliance.
It was also supported by numerous prominent Hindu and Jain
organizations, including American Hindu Association, Arya
Samaj USA, Center for the Study of Religion and Civilization,
Dharma Association of North America (DANAM), Federation of
Jain Associations in North America (JAINA), Forum for Secularism
and Development, Hindu International Council Against Defamation
(HICAD), Hindu University of America, Infinity Foundation,
Interfaith Freedom Foundation, International Society of Krishna
Consciousness (ISKCON), Jain Society of Metropolitan Washington,
Navyashastra, North American South Asian Bar Association (NASABA),
Saiva Siddhanta Church, Young Jain Professionals and Young
Indian Culture Group, Inc.
"Indeed this is an indication
of the importance of the issue and that this kind of discrimination
affects us all beyond cultural, social, linguistic and religious
lines," said Suhag Shukla, Legal Counsel for HAF.
The Board of Supervisors
of Chesterfield County, Virginia has been opening its meetings
with invocations given by local clergy who volunteer for the
task. This practice began after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled
in the 1980's that legislative bodies could begin their sessions
with non-sectarian prayer without violating the Establishment
Clause of the United States Constitution. Cynthia Simpson,
a member of the Wiccan faith who wanted to lead prayer, was
told that she could not pray at the meetings because she did
not practice a religion "within the Judeo-Christian tradition."
The Wiccan faith is based on a belief in unity with the earth
and the idea that God is not separate from human.
Ms. Simpson filed suit and
the lower court ruled in her favor ordering the County to
change the policy to "include all faiths or to stop using
the policy altogether." The county appealed and a very conservative
panel of judges from the Fourth Circuit Court reversed the
lower court holding that such discrimination was permissible
under current laws.
"This is perhaps the most
blatant affirmation of religious discrimination by any court
to date," stated Nikhil Joshi, Esq., member of the HAF Board
of Directors. "If allowed to stand, the Fourth Circuit's decision
will allow Chesterfield County to continue to selectively
dole out certain governmental privileges to members of majority
religions over others."
The HAF was represented
by the Washington, D.C. law firm of Mayer, Brown, Rowe and
Maw, LLP. A team of attorneys working with HAF argued in the
brief that the Circuit Court's ruling contradicts the Establishment
Clause of the U.S. Constitution by allowing the government
to discriminate among religions. Further, the decision also
opens the door to unnecessary entanglement of government and
religion by allowing government officials to make theological
conclusions about different traditions.
"Governments are extraordinarily
poorly suited to be arbiters of theology, and when they arrogate
that role, nothing good can come of it," the HAF brief argues.
"Not only are they certain to err, but they cannot help driving
wedges between religions and between denominations of the
same religion."
The Supreme Court will decide
whether to hear the case sometime this fall. Numerous civil
rights law experts and advocacy groups are predicting Simpson
v. Chesterfield County will definitely be accepted by the
Supreme Court and placed on next year's docket.
The full amicus curiae (friend
of the court brief) may be viewed at www.hinduamericanfoundation.org/Simpson.pdf
HAF is a non-profit, non-partisan
organization promoting the Hindu and American ideals of understanding,
tolerance and pluralism.
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