Religion, the Constitution, and COVID-19 Restrictions

We the People

National Constitution Center

News, News Commentary, History

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 11 December 2020

⏱️ 67 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo (2020), the Supreme Court recently granted a preliminary injunction against (i.e. temporarily blocked) New York’s COVID-19 restrictions on attendance at houses of worship (pending further litigation), siding with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and two orthodox Jewish synagogues, who argued that the restrictions violated the free exercise of religion guaranteed by the First Amendment. Constitutional law experts Michael Dorf of Cornell Law School and David French of The Dispatch join host Jeffrey Rosen to unpack the decision, the restrictions at issue, and broader questions including: Has the Supreme Court become more open to claims of religious discrimination? And, in the context of the ongoing pandemic, does and should the Supreme Court still apply its usual judicial tests to determine if something is constitutional? They also explain the role of prior cases crucial to understanding the modern debate in the area of religious freedom law—from Employment Division v. Smith to Masterpiece Cakeshop and beyond. Questions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

Transcript

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0:00.0	I'm Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center and welcome to We
0:08.7	the People, a weekly show of constitutional debate.
0:12.0	The National Constitution Center is a nonpartisan
0:14.4	nonprofit chartered by Congress to increase awareness and understanding of the
0:19.0	Constitution among the American people. Just before Thanksgiving, the Supreme Court blocked New York's
0:25.9	coronavirus restrictions on attendance at houses of worship. The court sided with the Roman
0:32.4	Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and two Orthodox Jewish synagogues,
0:36.0	they argued that the restrictions violated the free exercise of religion guaranteed by the First Amendment.
0:43.2	To understand the decision and its implication for future cases,
0:46.2	I'm joined by two of America's leading constitutional scholars
0:49.2	and two great friends of We The People.
0:51.6	Michael Dorff is Robert S Stevens, Professor of Law the People. Michael Dorf is Robert S. Stevens, professor of law
0:54.7	at Cornell Law School.
0:56.2	He writes a bi-weekly column for Justicia's
0:58.4	web magazine verdict and posts on his own blog
1:01.7	Dorf onon-law.
1:03.4	Michael, it is wonderful to have you back.
1:05.6	I'm delighted to be here, thank you.
1:07.4	And David French is a senior editor for the Dispatch
1:10.1	and was formerly a senior writer for a national review.
1:13.2	David is a New York Times best-selling author and author of the new book,
1:17.4	Divided We Fall.
	...

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