Supreme Court Case Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye Vs. City of Hialeah Term Paper

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Religious Freedom-First Amendment

Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah

Religious Freedom is one of the key principles on which the foundation of our country was laid. United States has always supported and endorsed free exercise of religion and this right has been considered so important that it became part of the First Amendment, which clearly states that:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. (1)

However while this is the golden ideal and a shining example of our country's commitment to religious freedom, there have been several instances in the past when either the government itself or some sections of the public tried to stifle religious rights of minority groups. Closer analysis of the law connected with religious freedom reveals that government has no right to pass a law banning or prohibiting any religious practice unless there is a compelling public interest to do so. For example laws of such nature can be passed and implemented if certain religious practice is considered immoral or harmful to the general public.

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All laws are thus required to be neutral. However blatant violation of religious freedom clause was witnessed in the case of Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah case in 1993 when city passed some ordinances banning the sacrifice of animals in religious rituals.

The Church of Lukumi follows the ancient religion of Santeria in which animal sacrifice is common on certain occasion like birth, marriage, death etc. When the Church leased land in Hialeah Florida and announced its plans to establish a church, school, and cultural center, city government disapproved. While the Church was only planning to bring their religion to the area so that followers could find a place for congregation etc., the city government saw it as a threat and passed several ordinances specifically targeting Santeria and banning animal sacrifice "in a public or private ritual or ceremony not for the primary purpose of food consumption." (2).

The Church, knowing that such ordinances violated their right to freely exercise their religion, filed suit against these city laws with the District Court. The city in its defense claimed that it has two interests: protecting public health and preventing cruelty to animals. It was….....

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