The Religious Freedom Restoration Act: A Legislative History
The effects of Employment Division of Oregon v. Smith, the 1990 Supreme Court free exercise decision, were felt far beyond the members of the Native American Church who were denied the right to ingest peyote as part of a religious ritual. Smith held that as long as a statute was generally applicable...
| Published in: | Journal of law and religion |
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| Authors: | ; |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Cambridge Univ. Press
1993
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| In: |
Journal of law and religion
Year: 1993, Volume: 10, Issue: 2, Pages: 531-541 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | The effects of Employment Division of Oregon v. Smith, the 1990 Supreme Court free exercise decision, were felt far beyond the members of the Native American Church who were denied the right to ingest peyote as part of a religious ritual. Smith held that as long as a statute was generally applicable and not directed at religion, it would be upheld, regardless of whether it infringed on a religious practice. This unexpectedly broad and severe opinion of the Court galvanized a large number of diverse religious groups as well as various civil rights organizations and the eventual result of their efforts was the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), a bill designed to restore free exercise law to its pre-Smith state.While the RFRA seemed initially to have almost universal backing, it eventually met resistance from various Catholic and anti-abortion groups which feared it could be used to argue for the right to a religiously-motivated abortion. More recently, concerns were expressed regarding the bill's effect on the rights of prisoners. However, despite the concerns, the bill passed both the House and Senate by wide margins and has been signed into law by President Clinton. |
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| ISSN: | 2163-3088 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of law and religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/1051146 |