Sikh Coalition Campaign Supports Right of Sikhs to Serve in the Military
April 20, 2009 - Posted by Jessica Paquette
 U.S. Army 2nd Lt. Tejdeep Singh Rattan, at a Sikh Coalition press conference to announce a campaign supporting the right of Sikhs to serve in the U.S. armed forces. Photo Credit: Sikh Coalition. Last week, the Sikh Coalition launched a campaign supporting the right of Sikhs to serve in the U.S. armed forces, calling for a lift on a U.S. Army policy that prohibits turbans, uncut hair, and beards — religious practices that are mandated by the Sikh faith.
The campaign hopes to draw attention to the case of two Sikh-American Army medical recruits, Capt. Kamaljeet Singh Kalsi and 2nd Lt. Tejdeep Singh Rattan, who have been told by Army officials that they must cut their hair and remove their turbans when they begin active duty later this year, despite being assured when they enlisted that the religious articles "would not be a problem."
Sikhs have served in the U.S. military as far back as World War I, and currently serve in militaries around the world. In 1981, the U.S. military instituted a policy that banned soldiers from wearing "conspicuous" articles of faith, although the policy did not apply to soldiers who were already serving at the time it went into effect.
Lawyers for Kalsi and Rattan say that the policy poses a "burden on their exercise of religion" under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, which prohibits the federal government from passing laws that substantially burden a person's exercise of religion without "compelling justification."
Sikhism, the fifth-largest organized religion in the world, has more than 23 million adherents worldwide, including over 500,000 in the United States. Observant Sikhs are required to wear certain articles of faith such as uncut hair (including an uncut beard for men) and a turban.
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President Obama Appoints LCCR Coalition Members to His Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
April 6, 2009 - Posted by Tyler Lewis
Today, four LCCR coalition members were appointed to the President's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships:
- Rev. Peg Chemberlin, president-elect of the National Council of Churches USA;
- Harry Knox, director of the Human Rights Campaign's Religion and Faith Program;
- Anthony Picarello, general counsel of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops; and
- Nancy Ratzan, president of the National Council of Jewish Women.
The President's Advisory Council is part of the new White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and will be made up of 25 leaders, religious and secular, who will serve one-year terms.
The appointees join two other LCCR coalition members - Rabbi David Saperstein, director and counsel of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, and Father Larry J. Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA – who were appointed in February.
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Rabbi Saperstein Urges Progressive Religious Community to Speak out on Judicial Nominations
February 24, 2009 - Posted by Katie Kohn
 Rabbi David Saperstein Rabbi David Saperstein, director and counsel of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, recently wrote a guest blog on The Huffington Post urging the progressive religious community to join other progressive organizations in pushing for the nomination of fair and independent judges to federal courts.
"Sitting out vital debates about judicial nominees jeopardizes the crucial gains we have made and will make in the legislative arena. We need to ensure the appointment of judges who will uphold an expansive interpretation of the law as it applies to our fundamental rights and the separation of church and state," said Saperstein.
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LCCR Coalition Members Appointed to President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
February 6, 2009 - Posted by Tyler Lewis
Yesterday, two LCCR coalition members – Rabbi David Saperstein, director and counsel of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (the RAC), and Father Larry J. Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA – were appointed to the President's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.
The President's Advisory Council is part of the new White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and will be made up of 25 leaders, religious and secular, who will serve one-year terms.
According to the White House press release, the new office will be "a resource for nonprofits and community organizations, both secular and faith based, looking for ways to make a bigger impact in their communities, learn their obligations under the law, cut through red tape, and make the most of what the federal government has to offer."
The RAC is the Washington, D.C., lobbying office of the Union for Reform Judaism, a collective of more than 900 Jewish congregations in the United States. Catholic Charities USA is the head of a network of more than 1,700 Catholic Charities agencies and works to reduce poverty in communities around the nation.
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