Abstract
Response to Steve Calabresi and Abe Salander, Religion and the Equal Protection Clause: Why the Constitution Requires School Vouchers
I am pleased to respond to the astute and provocative essay by Steven Calabresi and Abe Salander. We agree that some violations of religious freedom are best understood as violations of equality. We also share the view that the Fourteenth Amendment should protect citizens against religious discrimination. However, I argue that it is important to narrow the kinds of claims that can be brought under an equal protection framework. There is a free speech right of religions to express discriminatory views free from government bans or coercion. But discriminatory practices, even if religious in nature, should not be entitled to exemption from general laws as a matter of equal protection.
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