Title: The Hobby Lobby Case: Contraception and Religious Freedom
Headings: The Hobby Lobby Case: Contraception and Religious Freedom
The Hobby Lobby Case: Contraception and Religious Freedom
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Content: Before the ACA, another famous Supreme Court case permitted the government to infringe on religious freedom if it was an incidental effect, such as part of a religious practice is against criminal law. This case, Employment Division v. Smith, involved two members of the Native American Church who used peyote as part of a religious ceremony and were dismissed from their employer for drug use. After this decision, religious rights lobbyists convinced Congress to pass the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA). This Act ensured the government wouldn't burden people's ability to exercise their religion unless done to advance a compelling government interest. In 2010, the Supreme Court decided in the Citizens United case that corporations can spend their money on campaigns like a private citizen. This was part of an ongoing trend in which corporations have been gaining legal rights comparable to actual human beings. Thus, Hobby Lobby argued that even as a corporation it has religious rights comparable to any American. In September 2012, Hobby Lobby filed suit in federal court in Oklahoma based on its First Amendment Free Exercise of Religion right and the RFRA. The 10th Circuit Court ruled that Hobby Lobby was a person with religious freedom. Other federal courts upheld the federal government's contraceptive coverage rule.