Faith-based groups are asking the U.S. Congress to protect their religious identity within the Head Start program.
Dr. John C. Holmes, director of government affairs for the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI), is urging Congress to protect the rights of faith groups. The House is expected to take up H.R. 1429, the Improving Head Start Act, next week. The act revises and reauthorizes the programs through 2012.
A religious freedom amendment to the act, proposed by Rep. Luis Fortuño of Puerto Rico, was dropped in the committee process – but now there’s a widespread push to reintroduce the amendment or some form of it on the floor of the House next week.
Nationwide, faith-based groups like ACSI say they can’t participate in Head Start grant programs because of policies preventing them from having the freedom to hire people who share their faith. They also say they need protection from being forced to remove religious displays and decorations from their walls, such as Scripture verses.
In a letter to the House, Holmes wrote: “Faith-based groups should not be forced to give up their religious uniqueness because they want to assist the poor and hurting of their community. The faith and values that motivate these Americans to serve others should not be held against them.”
Candi Cushman, education analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said faith is "the very thing that makes these programs so effective – their faith-based character."
TAKE ACTION
Urge your representative to add an amendment to the Head Start legislation, H.R. 1429, that provides hiring protections for protect faith-based organizations. Please be sure to emphasize the hiring protections, since there have been efforts to propose an amendment that does not include this. You may contact him or her through the CitizenLink Action Center. If you are a CitizenLink Daily Update subscriber, click on the blue "Take Action" button in the e-mail to be automatically logged in to our Action Center. Otherwise, click on this link.
(Paid for by Focus on the Family Action)
