The last two years have exposed the lack of understanding many officials have about America’s first amendment protection of the freedom of religion. Under the threat of the coronavirus pandemic, many states passed laws that prevented public – and at times even private – worship. For one of the most fundamental aspects of American liberty to be so challenged during a time of national crisis raises serious questions about the strength of religious liberty in America today.
In on honor of National Religious Freedom Day this Sunday, 1/16, Eric Treene, the former Special Counsel for Religious Discrimination at the United States Department of Justice, joins us to share how he fought for this fundamental freedom throughout the pandemic, and for many years prior. Eric’s unique role at the DOJ made him an important voice of reason at a time when religious liberty was under threat.
Watch the interview on Hardwired's YouTube channel here: youtu.be/u7a4R6tOh5c
Eric Treene is Senior Counsel at Storzer and Associates in Washington, D.C., and an Instructor at Reformed Theological Seminary in Vienna, Virginia. He served for 19 years in four administrations in the U.S. Department of Justice as Special Counsel for Religious Discrimination. He provided leadership for the Department on a wide range of religious liberty issues, including developing and overseeing the Department’s enforcement program for the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA); testifying before the U.S. Senate on religious hate crimes and developing training programs for local law enforcement and religious community leaders on protecting places of worship; and leading the Department’s efforts on protecting religious liberty rights during the COVID-19 epidemic. Mr. Treene represented the United States in a range of Free Exercise and RLUIPA cases in U.S. District Courts, various U.S. Courts of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court.
Prior to serving at the Department of Justice, Mr. Treene was Litigation Director at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty in Washington, D.C., and is a former law clerk to the Hon. John M. Walker, Jr. on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He is a graduate of Amherst College and Harvard Law School.
He is a member of the bars of New York and Washington, D.C., and is a member of the bars of various federal District and Appeals courts, and the United States Supreme Court. He is the author of a number of articles and book chapters on religious liberty issues. He has lectured widely in law schools and universities in the U.S. as well as Spain and Malaysia on religious liberty.
Department of Justice Office of Special Counsel for Religious Discrimination https://www.justice.gov/crt/combating-religious-discrimination-and-protecting-religious-freedom-19
Religious Practice and Social Distancing https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/attorney-general-william-p-barr-issues-statement-religious-practice-and-social-44:39 -0
House of Worship Safety, Department of Homeland Security Office of Faith Based & Community Partnerships https://www.cisa.gov/faith-based-organizations-houses-worship
Islamic Center of Murfreesboro vs. Rutherford County https://www.becketlaw.org/case/islamic-center-murfreesboro-v-rutherford-county/