ADF urges Biden admin not to discriminate against faith-based organizations
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Greg Baylor, director of the ADF Center for Religious Schools, regarding a formal comment ADF attorneys submitted Tuesday to nine federal agencies urging them not to discriminate against faith-based organizations that participate in federally funded programs:
“Religious beliefs motivate many Americans to help their neighbors in need, and these individuals and organizations shouldn’t be forced to abandon their religious character or mission before partnering with the government. But that’s just what the Biden administration is attempting to do in a newly proposed rule change. The language the administration is proposing to remove from existing rules ensures that faith-based organizations can preserve their religious autonomy and identity when participating in federally funded programs. By eliminating those protections, the Biden administration is unconstitutionally and unfairly targeting faith-based groups simply because of their religious character. Our public comment filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development urges it to respect the essential freedoms that the First Amendment protects. As the Supreme Court wrote in the ADF case Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia v. Comer, to exclude anyone from a public benefit solely on the basis of religious identity ‘is odious to our Constitution…and cannot stand.’”
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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ABOUT Gregory S. Baylor
Gregory S. Baylor serves as senior counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom, where he is the director of the Center for Religious Schools and senior counsel for government affairs. Since joining ADF in 2009, Baylor has focused on defending and advancing the religious freedom of faith-based educational institutions through advice, education, legislative and public advocacy, and representation in disputes. He has testified about religious liberty issues three times before congressional committees. Greg earned his Juris Doctor in 1990 from Duke University School of Law, where he graduated Order of the Coif, with high honors, and served on the editorial board of the Duke Law Journal. He received his bachelor’s degree in Honors English in 1987 from Dartmouth College. Following graduation from law school, he served as law clerk to the Hon. Jerry E. Smith on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. He practiced labor and employment law at two large international law firms for three years before joining the staff of Christian Legal Society’s Center for Law and Religious Freedom, where he served for 15 years prior to joining ADF.