Big news! Today we are launching ONE NATION, ALL BELIEFS, a special SWAJ series produced in partnership with Americans United for the Separation of Church and State.
The first three episodes are available now.
Here is the description:
One Nation, All Beliefs is a limited podcast series on the separation of church and state as the basis for our most cherished American freedoms. Produced by Brad Onishi at Straight White American Jesus in partnership with Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the series highlights the voices of reproductive rights organizers, education activists, queer Black clergy, trans pastors, and progressive politicos in order to show the ways a strong separation of church and state is the shield that protects everyone's right to live as themselves and believe as they choose — ensuring freedom without favor and equality without exception.
LGBTQ+ rights, reproductive rights, protecting public schools, and freedom from religion - as well as freedom of religion - they all depend on a wall between church and state.
Because we want an America where:
religion does not dictate public policy;
the government does not tell Americans what to believe or how to practice their faith;
discrimination is not justified under the guise of religion.
I conducted these interviews in April when I traveled to Washington, DC. for the Summit for Religious Freedom hosted by Americans United. It was a great conference that gathered secular organizers, clergy, concerned citizens, researchers, non-profit leaders, and others. The Rev. Traci Blackmon explained what’s happening in the country and why the Summit was a necessary gathering to fight back:
“What is being legislated is, dominantly, biblical illiteracy and theological malpractice,” Blackmon argued. “And the reason that it is important that no one’s religious beliefs be legislated is because when we do that, we remove everyone’s freedom. That’s why we are here.”
My friend Brian Kaylor summed it up perfectly: “During the two-day event, other clergy joined activists, scholars, and lawyers to echo Blackmon’s call to defend the separation of church and state since it helps ensure religious freedom and other human rights. And that also meant speaking out about the dangers of Christian Nationalism, since privileging a narrow slice of Christianity inherently cuts against democratic rights in a pluralistic society.
I gave the opening keynote at the Summit.
“The White Christian Nationalist apocalyptic narrative justifies eschewing all the norms and processes, all of the ways that we do business in democratic institutions, and it says right now, today, you better save America. It leads to what I call the authoritarian turn in White Christian Nationalism politics. Because if you’re in the apocalypse and the world is going to end, democracy takes a long time, democracy is kind of inconvenient, democracy is kind of slow. And guess what? You may not have the votes and you may know that. You may know as a Christian Nationalist you’re actually the minority.”
“So democracy is kind of annoying. And you know what’s helpful? Authoritarianism,” he added. “Authoritarian is convenient for the Christian Nationalist because it is the only way they can actually get what they want.”
Andrew Seidel, Bradley Onishi, Rev. Naomi Washington-Leapheart.
Please check out the series! Hit subscribe and follow along. We will release 3 new interviews every Thursday for the next month!
Awesome!! Looking forward to listening to this!