A Moment of Your Time?

I usually don’t stray from the topics of fashion or style & their related areas for this blog, but I’m going to make an exception today, because I read something yesterday that really upset me.

What it comes down to is that a Wiccan priest & chaplain, Patrick McCollum, has been trying for years to overturn California’s “five faiths” policy. The policy limits the hiring of paid chaplains to Protestant, Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, and Native American religions. (As a side note, I do think it’s really cool that Native American religions are already recognized. Even if the rest of the policy is a major fail.) In 2009 a California federal district court ruled that he had no standing to bring his suit (among other reasons, they denied his standing as a taxpayer – WTF?), but he’s recently gained support from several civil & religious groups that think his case should be heard (and rightfully so!).

However, a new Amicus Curiae filed be a conservative activist organization called WallBuilders, focuses on other issues than McCollum’s standing as a taxpayer or non-inmate. In fact, they argue that he doesn’t have any standing because pagans (among other religions) aren’t guaranteed the same rights and protections as Christian or monotheist citizens.

“The true historic meaning of “religion” excludes paganism and witchcraft, and thus, does not compel a conclusion that McCollum has state taxpayer standing … paganism and witchcraft were never intended to receive the protections of the Religion Clauses.Thus, in the present case there can be no violation of those clauses … Should this Court conclude that McCollum has taxpayer standing … this Court should at least acknowledge that its conclusion is compelled by Supreme Court precedent, not by history or the intent of the Framers.”

Instead of rejecting the amicus, McCollum said that lawyers for the California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation (CDCR) have argued from the beginning that there are “first tier” & “second tier” religions.

“I originally sued on behalf of myself and Pagan inmates as their chaplain, but about a year later several inmates joined the lawsuit.  Together, we claimed that it is unconstitutional for the state to deny the Pagan inmates their religious rights, their religious materials, and their religious services.

During the course of the case, the CDCR, other related defendants, and the Assistant Attorneys General who represents them have argued before the court that Pagans are not deserving of equal civil rights as are provided adherents of the preferred faiths.  In one of their first arguments to the court, the defendants said that certain “traditional” faiths are first tier faiths and that those faiths were meant to have equal rights and  protections under the United States Constitution, but that all of the other faiths were second tier faiths, and were not meant to have the same equal rights and protections under the United States Constitution as the first tier faiths.”

Uh huh. I don’t think anyone’s faith deserves to be classified “second tier”. And interestingly enough, Hinduism and Buddhism aren’t counted among “traditional” religions – both are older than Christianity! Hinduism is arguably the oldest religions without a break in practice. Kind of interesting how it’s not “traditional” enough for these people.

I’m just going to let the Wild Hunt take it from here:

If the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals should decide that this line of argument has any validity, it could send a shock-wave through the legal community, casting doubt on any number of legal cases that now ensure the equal protection of religious minorities. This case, fought for so long, and simply to keep a Wiccan from possibly getting a paid chaplaincy position, has already created a “two-tier” religious system for incarcerated Pagans in California. Guaranteeing that some faiths are more equal than others.

& more from Mr. McCollum:

I think it is now time for our community, and also for people of good will in other faiths and religious communities of conscience to respond to this outrageous position in support of continued discrimination by a governmental agency.  The safety and security of every minority faith community in the country is in danger when arguments like these are thought to be credible by anyone.

We all need to write to Jerry Brown, the California Attorney General, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Mathew L. Cate, the Secretary of the CDCR and let them all know our outrage.  And if you are a Pagan or Heathen, then we must also demand equal treatment, equal accommodations, equal access to our religious items for institutionalized persons, including prison inmates, and equal access to paid Pagan chaplains.”

I haven’t seen this picked up by any major news outlets, so I don’t know how many people are contacting them. And I don’t have a form letter for you to send, either. But please, PLEASE consider sending an angry letter to these people (contact info is at the links, I believe). Especially if you’re in California, as your words probably mean more than I do. This isn’t just about prison chaplaincy – a court decision that marked some religions as “first tier” and others as “second tier” would set a not-so-awesome precedent.

Thanks for reading – again, please send a letter & pass it along! I’ve contacted Feministing & Shapely Prose with the hopes that they’ll post about it and help get the word out, but either way, it can’t hurt.