Frank Ravitch (Michigan State University College of Law) discusses America’s shift from moderate separationism to an anti-separationist approach to religion-state relations. According to Ravitch, the victimhood of social conservatives not only drives the Supreme Court’s current majority to an increasingly anti-establishment stance but also results in strong politicization of the Court and its decisions. Ravitch explains how recent First Amendment decisions, including Mahmoud v. Taylor (more because of bias evident in the majority opinion rather than the decision itself), contribute to this trend and predicts that the Court will eventually overturn Smith v. Employment Division and constitutionalize Burwell v. Hobby Lobby. He also touches on an alternative approach to both the current anti-establishment drift and radical separationism.

Timeline:

0:00 – America’s shift to an anti-separationist religion-state relationship

05:18 – Why is Employment Division v. Smith not a separationist decision?

08:07 – Would the overturning of Smith actually accelerate the current Court’s move toward an anti-separationist approach?

13:15 – The Oklahoma Catholic charter school case and Mahmoud v. Taylor

22:35 – Could Justice Barrett be a driver toward a more robust separationist approach by the Court?

24:22 – On the accommodationist–separationist approach to religion-state relations as an alterantive