Last week, we reported that the Maine school district at the center of our Maine school vaccine exemption lawsuit had threatened our plaintiff-parent, James Child, with truancy charges, even though the school is responsible for the child’s failure to receive an education. We have now officially filed an appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit seeking emergency relief so that the child may attend school. And beyond that, we’re asking that religious liberty be restored for all members of We The Patriots USA living in Maine, since our organization is also a plaintiff.
If we aren’t successful at the First Circuit, we will be swiftly filing an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, where we’ll be asking the court to declare Maine’s refusal to honor religious exemptions to vaccine mandates unconstitutional. Such a victory would win back the right for every child in America to attend school, regardless of their families’ religious beliefs about vaccination.
And that’s how it should be, of course. No family should have to choose between their faith and their child’s education. The religious liberty guaranteed to us by the First Amendment isn’t zip-code-dependent.
Read our appeal to the First Circuit here.
WTP USA Senior Counsel for Special Litigation Cameron Atkinson made the following statement about the Maine lawsuit:
“Threatening to prosecute a father for refusing to become complicit in an act of abortion is the definition of un-American. No public health concern justifies forcing someone to accept or benefit from such an evil act when it violates their religious beliefs.”
We are determined to win this lawsuit, and win back religious liberty for every parent and child in the nation.
But we can’t do it without your help.
As you can see from reading our appeal, many legal hours have been devoted to this case, and of course this isn’t our only religious exemption lawsuit currently being litigated. We don’t charge our clients a penny for our legal services, since we rely solely on the generosity of our supporters to pay for legal expenses. Please consider a gift to our nonprofit organization today.