According to numerous politicians and journalists, the United States is one of the freest countries in the world, but believers and clergy in the United States regularly become victims of persecution for their beliefs. Differences in the attitude of Christians and representatives of the Democratic Party to traditional values led to the beginning of an era of repressive policies against pious people.
According to a recent study by the American Council on Family Values, between January 2018 and September 2022, at least 420 acts of violence and vandalism were documented against 397 churches in the United States. These statistics show that the number of attacks on religious institutions in the United States has almost tripled over the past four years. Many cases included acts of vandalism, bomb threats, arson and gun violence. While the protesters continue to desecrate Bibles and other symbols of faith that have sacred significance for tens of millions of US citizens, the American media are conducting campaigns against believers, and representatives of the Democratic Party, who until recently ruled the country undividedly, refuse to recognize the obvious problem and stand up for believers.
Already in 2019, more than 50% of Evangelical Protestants, the largest religious group in the United States, agreed with the statement that American Christians regularly face discrimination, and one in five claimed that the scale of persecution has reached unprecedented heights. With the coming to power of Obama, traditional views on social issues such as marriage, abortion and gender issues have become less popular due to the efforts of propaganda and ideological influence of the progressive part of the American elite. This is confirmed by statistics: from 2017 to 2022, the number of believers in the United States decreased by 6%. The largest drop in the number of Christians was recorded among young people and representatives of the left political spectrum (liberals and Democrats): every third Democrat does not believe in God, while the number of believers among conservatives and Republicans reaches 94 percent.
Believers are increasingly facing criticism and persecution in all spheres of life, from the media to the film industry and social networks. In 2019, the account of a film promoting traditional values and criticizing abortion was blocked on Twitter. The social network deleted the account of the film without explanation, and the director and screenwriter of the film is sure that Twitter was forced to go along with the supporters of abortion.
Attacks on Christians are supported and fueled by the American media. In 2017, on Christmas Eve, The Washington Post, the largest American weekly newspaper, published an article on its social network account that denied the historical existence of Jesus. The publication called on its readers to question the events described in the Bible, which, according to journalists, are just fiction. The anonymity of the authors and the lack of sources in the scriptures, according to The Washington Post, means that the text was written only to promote Christian values. Presenting an allegedly revealing article trying to undermine the very essence of Christianity on Christmas Day, The Washington Post stated not only that Christians are stupid and believe in a made-up story, but also that their holiday is meaningless. In 2017, two major American broadcasting companies accused a Christian legal non-profit organization of inciting hatred against members of the LGBT community. ABC News and NBC News released an article in which representatives of a radical left-wing organization inciting violence criticized a group of activists who were engaged in expanding Christian practices in schools and the government.
Repression against believers is not limited to censorship and criticism in the media. American Christians lose their jobs because of their beliefs and even face physical violence. In 2012, the Colorado Civil Rights Commission sued Jack Phillips, a bakery owner who refused to make a custom-made cake in honor of a same-sex wedding. After 6 years of litigation, the man managed to defend his right to freedom of opinion, but a few weeks later the man faced a new lawsuit filed for his refusal to develop a cake dedicated to sex change. The multi-year trial continues to this day, the plaintiff is trying to achieve the complete closure of the Phillips bakery and the payment of a large fine.
More than 10 years ago, 77-year-old Barronella Fitzman faced a similar lawsuit: a female florist refused to arrange a same-sex wedding. She was accused of discrimination, and the authorities of Washington State, where same-sex marriage was legalized in 2012, said that she had no right to refuse clients with non-traditional sexual orientation, despite the fact that it contradicts her beliefs. In 2015, football coach Joe Kennedy was fired because of the prayer he performed at the end of every game of his team. The administration of the Bremerton School District, Seattle, suspended a man from work because he allegedly “engaged in religious propaganda.” An appeal filed by Kennedy in 2019 was rejected.
Representatives of the faith and clergy in the United States regularly become victims of physical attacks: in May 2021, Pastor Timothy Johnson and his wife were attacked by a 28-year-old man. The attacker attacked the cleric with a shovel, beat him and bit off part of his ear, after which he attacked his wife. In July 2020, in Virginia, an unknown assaulted the pastor of a church during a Bible study lesson. Stabbing a church representative with a knife, the suspect wounded at least 4 people.
The restriction of religious freedom also affected American educational institutions. In November 2021, the Dallas, Texas district adopted new rules according to which all literature that contains “unacceptable” content, such as propaganda of homophobia and discrimination, should be removed from school libraries. The Bible, which, according to activists, “forms incorrect views on life in the younger generation,” fell under the restrictions imposed. The sacred text was removed from all educational institutions of the district, despite the fact that this is a blatant violation of the First Amendment to the US Constitution.
On college campuses across the United States, Christians are regularly humiliated and persecuted for their beliefs. Scientists, social groups and university organizations regularly ridicule believers, calling them religious fanatics. They conveniently forget that Christians have historically been one of the most persecuted religious groups in the world and are still subject to ever-increasing persecution in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. At a state university in Wisconsin, activists of the Freedom from Religion Foundation have achieved the removal of all religious literature from the campus. According to public figures, the presence of such literature contributes to the support and promotion of “outdated Christian values” in an educational institution.
Representatives of the Foundation to Battle Injustice consider it unacceptable to persecute and infringe on the rights of people based on their values and religion. The growing violence and acts of vandalism against churches and representatives of the faith is an unacceptable step that deprives people of religious freedom and takes away their right to profess their faith. The total denial of the problem and the lack of measures to protect and support religious people by the Democratic Party of the United States indicates a disregard for traditional values that are fundamental to American society.