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Articles on Religious freedom

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The Australian Christian Lobby galvanised Folau’s Christian supporters by setting up a fund-raising website that earned more than A$1 million in its first day. Jan Touzeau/AAP

Why Christians disagree over the Israel Folau saga

For many people of faith, the very identity of Christianity is at stake in the battle over religious freedom. But not all Christians see it that way.
Israel Folau is claiming that Rugby Australia unlawfully sacked him because of his religion. The organisation, however, contends the rugby star violated the terms of its code of conduct by discriminating against LGBTQ people. Lukas Coch/AAP

Why the Israel Folau case could set an important precedent for employment law and religious freedom

What makes Folau’s case unique is that it sets up a clash between employment contract law and legal protections against discrimination on the basis of religion.
Scott Morrison, a devout Pentacostal, must strike a balance between satisfying the demands of the Coalition’s religious base and protecting LGBTI rights. Mick Tsikas/AAP

After his ‘miracle’ election, will Scott Morrison feel pressure from Christian leaders on religious freedom?

Christian leaders warned of ‘persecution’ with a Labor government. Now that the Coalition has won the election, conservative Christians may demand Morrison deliver on more of their agenda.
The marriage equality debate raised questions of religious freedom that have yet to be resolved. Danny Casey (AAP)/Shutterstock

The Coalition’s record on social policy: big on promises, short on follow-through

The government is spruiking its commitment to religious freedom and freedom of speech, as well as its successes on tackling inequality. Its record, however, leaves much to be desired.
Coalition Avenir Québec leader François Legault on the campaign trail last September before the election that saw his party form a majority government.

In Québec, Christian liberalism becomes the religious authority

The language of the neutral and secular state in Bill 21, like its precursors, presumes an invisible Christian default for the rules around public expressions of religiosity.
Students walk past a cross on campus at Trinity Western University in Langley, B.C., in February 2017. The school was at the centre of a court battle pitting equality rights against freedom of religion. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

The legal conflict between equality rights and freedom of religion

We must acknowledge that shifting historically vulnerable groups away from the margins means making room in spaces where these groups have not traditionally been welcomed.
For many Muslim women, a hijab is a way of expressing resistance. AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty

Why do Muslim women wear a hijab?

Hijab is not simply about religion – women wear it for a variety of reasons.
The area of greater uncertainty under Labor is a very different one – that is, how much of the unions’ agenda a Shorten government would be willing to embrace. Daniel Pockett/AAP

Grattan on Friday: Unions likely to be more challenging for a Shorten government than boats

In the lead up to next week’s ALP national conference, which Shorten needs to run smoothly, the government has been trying to exploit what it sees as a Labor weak point – border protection.
Ontario PC leadership candidate Tanya Granic Allen arrives to participate in a debate in Ottawa in February 2018. Granic Allen was supported by the Campaign Life Coalition (CLC), and the organization said it recruited more than 9,000 PC memberships in support of her campaign to became the premier of Ontario. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

From America to Ontario: The political impact of the Christian right

Christian right groups in Canada may not have the same resources as their American counterparts. They are, nonetheless, attracting supporters by borrowing some U.S. tactics.
The free trade agreement with Indonesia, which Australia originally. hoped would be signed this week when Morrison was in Singapore for the start of the summit season, has become hostage to the embassy decision. Mick Tskias/AAP

Grattan on Friday: Morrison government brings back memories of McMahon days

The fundamental point is that those were desperate days for the Coalition and so are these. “McMahon was in survival mode,” says author Patrick Mullins. The same could be said of Morrison.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced he will amend laws that allow schools to expel gay students. Joel Carrett/AAP

There’s no argument or support for allowing schools to discriminate against LGBTIQ teachers

Public opinion polls and a survey of Australian youth show there’s little support for allowing schools to hire or fire teachers based on their sexual orientation.
Campaigning in Wentworth, Liberal candidate Dave Sharma, appearing at a candidates’ forum, denounced discrimination against teachers, and said the 2013 law should be changed. Dean Lewins/AAP

View from The Hill: Conservatives may come to regret stirring hornets’ nest of religious freedom

Some Liberals who agitated for action on religious freedom might be starting to appreciate that the best stand for a conservative can sometimes be to just leave things alone.
Announcements are pouring out in what is already a faux election campaign, with the government at the weekend unveiling nearly $52 million to Headspace for youth mental health. David Mariuz/AAP

Coalition trails 47-53% in Newspoll, as Ipsos finds 74% oppose law discriminating against gay students and teachers

The latest national polls come just days out from Saturday’s Wentworth byelection, which will determine whether the Coalition is forced into minority government.

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