Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Gonzalez opens website to register complaints

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Justice Department is launching a program to enforce protections against religious discrimination, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announced Tuesday. The First Freedom Project would increase education about religious discrimination by holding a series of training seminars throughout the country over coming months, Gonzales told leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention.

Gonzales said he also plans to create a Religious Freedom Task Force, which will review policies and religious discrimination cases. He said he doesn't know how much the program will cost.




"One of our most cherished freedoms ... is our religious freedom," he said. "It is a fundamental part of our nation's history."The first training seminar will be held in Kansas City, Mo., in March, followed by seminars in Tampa, Fla., in April and Seattle in May. Other dates and locations will be announced later.

As part of the new program, the Justice Department is setting up a Web site, http://www.firstfreedom.gov, with information on enforcement and how to file a religious discrimination complaint.


So, Bushco is facillitating the wingnuts' bogus complaints. I say, every time they try to write their religious strictures into our laws, we should all go to the website and fill out a complaint. When they pay no attention to all the complaints by the secular population, then we could register complaints about that. Complaints will follow complaints, in a downward spiral of hateful vicious slander. Just about what we need right now, no?

read it yourself here

3 Comments:

Blogger andi said...

Yes, they are. But this may (and hopefully will) be a double-edged sword. It might be a handy weapon for the growing Muslim population to protect their mosques as well.

Strange, though - there's nothing in there about protecting the rights of atheists or folks who choose not to practice a religion. Which is, in itself, a personal religious choice.

I wonder how much more clout this will give doctors and pharmacists who choose not to prescribe or fill prescriptions for birth control and Plan B. It will be interesting to see how this is used.

I agree that people of all faiths (and lack thereof) should participate in this as frequently as possible.

The Wiccan solider whose family had to fight to allow the Wiccan pentacle to be inscribed into his tombstone.

The army chaplain who converted to Wicca from the Pentacostal ministry and was promptly released from duty as a chaplain. (I don't think they discharged him completely.)

The woman who was recently held in prison after she was raped, and whose prison guard would not call a pharmacist for an emergency Plan B prescription due to religious beliefs.

It will be interesting. To say the least.

8:49 AM, February 22, 2007  
Blogger SB Gypsy said...

Hey Andi,

My fear is that they will use these reports to fuel the wingnuts. I wonder if all those people you mention would get a hearing from the AG's office if they did fill in the form...

9:20 AM, February 23, 2007  
Blogger andi said...

I doubt it, unless they kick up a huge fuss for a very long time. And I hope there's a way to check the numbers independently, to see who's actually being logged in to the system and who's not getting through at all. Wonder how that will work.

9:30 AM, February 23, 2007  

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