In a statement, the Archdiocese of Washington expressed disappointment that the U. S. Supreme Court on April 6 declined to review a lower court’s ruling that the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s prohibition of religious advertising did not violate the First Amendment. In 2017, the archdiocese filed a legal action in federal court challenging the transit system’s advertising guidelines after WMATA rejected an advertisement promoting the archdiocese’s annual “Find the Perfect Gift” initiative during the Advent and Christmas seasons.
“The Archdiocese of Washington is disappointed that the U. S. Supreme Court declined to grant our petition to review the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s refusal to allow ‘Find the Perfect Gift’ advertisements to appear on Metro buses in the region,” the archdiocese’s statement said, later noting, “We will continue to be a voice on the importance of religious freedom and expression and hope that other matters pending before the Supreme Court will underscore these important constitutional issues.”
In the case of the Archdiocese of Washington v. Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, et al., the Supreme Court announced that it was denying the archdiocese’s petition to review the ruling of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which upheld WMATA’s ban on religious advertisements on its buses and trains. In 2015, the D. C. area transit agency adopted a policy prohibiting ads that promoted or opposed religions or religious beliefs or practices.
In denying the petition to review the case, the Supreme Court noted that Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh “took no part in the consideration or decision of this petition.” Justice Kavanaugh had recused himself from taking part because he had earlier served on the lower court that heard the case, and he was nominated to the Supreme Court before it ruled on that matter. The Washington Post’s reporting on the issue noted that during oral arguments in that case before that lower court, then-Judge Kavanaugh had called WMATA’s ban of religious advertisements “pure discrimination.”
Supreme Court Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch issued a statement joined by Associate Justice Clarence Thomas in criticizing the Court’s decision not to review the lower court ruling, writing, “Because the full Court is unable to hear this case, it makes a poor candidate for our review. But for that complication, however, our intervention and a reversal would be warranted.”
Justice Gorsuch’s statement noted, “At Christmastime a few years ago, the Catholic Church sought to place advertisements on the side of local buses in Washington, D. C. The proposed image was a simple one -- a silhouette of three shepherds and sheep, along with the words ‘Find the Perfect Gift’ and a church website address. No one disputes that, if Macy’s had sought to place the same advertisement with its own website address, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) would have accepted the business gladly. Indeed, WMATA admits that it views Christmas as having ‘a secular half ’ and ‘a religious half,’ and it has shown no hesitation in taking secular Christmas advertisements. Still, when it came to the church’s proposal, WMATA balked. That is viewpoint discrimination by a governmental entity and a violation of the First Amendment.”
Justice Gorsuch’s statement noted, “At Christmastime a few years ago, the Catholic Church sought to place advertisements on the side of local buses in Washington, D.C. The proposed image was a simple one -- a silhouette of three shepherds and sheep, along with the words ‘Find the Perfect Gift’ and a church website address. No one disputes that, if Macy’s had sought to place the same advertisement with its own website address, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) would have accepted the business gladly. Indeed, WMATA admits that it views Christmas as having ‘a secular half ’ and ‘a religious half,’ and it has shown no hesitation in taking secular Christmas advertisements. Still, when it came to the church’s proposal, WMATA balked. That is viewpoint discrimination by a governmental entity and a violation of the First Amendment.”
The statement by Justice Gorsuch also said, “…Once the government allows a subject to be discussed, it cannot silence religious views on that topic… So the government may designate a forum for art or music, but it cannot then forbid discussion of Michelangelo’s David or Handel’s Messiah. And once the government declares Christmas open for commentary, it can hardly turn around and mute religious speech on a subject that so naturally invites it.”... (Read more)
Submitted 1451 days ago
Latest News