We Dissent
By Rebecca Markert
Categories: News, Politics, Education
We Dissent is a monthly law podcast hosted by two secular women, who are also attorneys at the Freedom From Religion Foundation and Americans United for Separation of Church and State. Join us as we discuss developments affecting the separation of church and state in the US Supreme Court and lower federal courts. We'll also explore other advocacy work we do to help atheists and other nonreligious people outside the courtroom. We know there are so many atheist podcasts and legal podcasts and you have a lot to choose from, but we hope you'll join us, the only legal podcast for atheists and agnostics hosted completely by women lawyers. We can't wait to start these conversations.
61 episodes indexed on podsearch.
Recent episodes
- Religious Liberty Commission
Alison, Liz, and Rebecca discuss the Trump administration's Religious Liberty Commission and break down its draft report. They explain how the commission and its report fit into the administration's broader effort to push a Christian nationalist narrative that redefines religious liberty to…
- Christian Nationalism in Education with Maya Henson
Alison, Liz, and Rebecca welcome Maya Henson, Senior Research Analyst with the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Project, for a deep dive into the impact of Christian supremacy and anti-student inclusion movements on public education. They discuss the many strategies used by Christian…
- SCOTUS Term Round Up
Alison, Liz, and Rebecca recap the recent Supreme Court term and its implications for religious liberty. They break down the Court's rulings on conversion therapy bans, religious rights for prisoners, and transgender sports bans in public schools. They also discuss the ever-expanding "shadow…
- Rededicate 250 & the "Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias" Taskforce
America turns 250 and the Trump Administration is celebrating by rewriting the past and the present. Alison, Liz, and Rebecca discuss how the administration hijacked the nation's planned bipartisan 250th anniversary celebration and turned it into a tax-payer funded Christian nationalist prayer…
- Bonus! From Progress Texas: Resisting Christian Nationalism with Rebecca Markert of Americans United
We Dissent co-host Rebecca Markert was recently featured on "In Progress," a part of the Progress Texas podcast network. Please enjoy this episode of In Progress while you wait for our next episode! From Dan Patrick's declaration that the separation of church and state is dead, to Texas…
- The War on Nonprofits
Rebecca, Liz, and Alison speak with Rachel Levinson-Waldman from the Brennan Center for Justice about the Trump administration and current Congress weaponizing the government to attack nonprofits and punish speech and viewpoints they don't like. They explore how executive orders and anti-terrorism…
- State Legislative Roundup with Rachael Stryer
Alison, Liz, and Rebecca welcome AU Public Policy Counsel Rachael Stryer to review what came out of the state legislative sessions this year. They survey the laws state legislatures passed to force religion into public schools, use religion to discriminate against LGBTQ people, and divert public…
- Pronatalism with Emily Martin
Alison, Liz, and Rebecca take on the far-right pronatalism movement with guest Emily Martin, NWLC's Chief Program Officer. They explain the movement's history of racism, sexism, and eugenics, the alarming support it has in the Trump administration, and what truly pro-family policy would look like…
- The Supreme Court Tackles Trans Sports Bans with Shiwali Patel
We Dissent welcomes guest Shiwali Patel, Senior Director of Education Justice at National Women's Law Center, who walks us through the anti-trans sports ban cases currently before the Supreme Court, Little v. Hecox and West Virginia v. B.P.J. We discuss the history of Title IX and why the attack…
- Our Federal Courts with Alison Gill
We Dissent welcomes back Alison Gill as co-host! Alison shares what she's been up to since leaving the pod, and then walks Rebecca and Liz through the state of our federal bench. We discuss federal judicial nominations from the recent presidential administrations and what it has meant or means for…
- Message to Listeners
There's no new episode this month, instead we have a special message for our listeners. We're excited to announce that Alison Gill is returning to the podcast starting in February! Additionally, the National Women's Law Center is going to be a co-sponsor of We Dissent moving forward. We have a lot…
- Religion Behind Bars Reprise: Landor v. Louisiana
Rebecca and Liz explain Landor v. Louisiana, the Supreme Court case that will decide whether a Rastafarian inmate who'd grown his dreadlocks for 20 years can sue the Louisiana prison officials who handcuffed him to a chair, held him down, and forcibly shaved him in violation of the law. They dive…
- "Conversion Therapy" at the Supreme Court
Liz and Rebecca cover Chiles v. Salazar, the case before the Supreme Court seeking to strike down a Colorado law banning mental health professionals from practicing "conversion therapy" on children. They explain the details of the case and discuss the hypocrisy of a ruling striking down the ban…
- Stone Unturned: Courts have never allowed Ten Commandments in public schools
Rebecca and Liz break down the strong history of courts rejecting government attempts to display Ten Commandments in public schools. They explain the seminal 1980 case Stone v. Graham, the SCOTUS cases since then reinforcing that precedent, and the growing number of states passing blatantly…
- 100 years of monkey business: the Scopes trial centennial
Rebecca and Liz commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Scopes Trial. They discuss the infamous "monkey" trial, and the history of teaching evolution in public schools. An "everything old is new again" episode, showing the impact of the Scopes trial throughout the last century and digging into…
- Hoodwinked: Health Care Sharing Ministries with Sarah Levin
Rebecca and Liz explore health care sharing ministries (HCSMs) with guest, Sarah Levin. Sarah guides us through this religious billion dollar industry. We discuss what HCSMs are and what they are not, and why we need to push for them to have transparency. Background and Resources Bio for Sarah…
- SCOTUS Wrap Up
Liz and Rebecca explain the final three Supreme Court rulings with huge stakes for true religious freedom. They discuss the Court's continued zeal for religious favoritism in the Catholic Charities, Mahmoud, and Skrmetti rulings—further expanding exemptions from the law for religious employers…
- That Does Not Equal Nine: St. Isidore v. Drummond
The third in the "unholy trinity" of religion clause cases from the current SCOTUS term. Liz and Rebecca discuss the case that sought to create the nation's first Catholic public charter school and the surprisingly early decision issued by a divided Court. They explain how this case came to be…
- High Unholy Season Continues: Mahmoud v. Taylor
Liz and Rebecca continue the SCOTUS religion cases coverage with Mahmoud v. Taylor, a case that threatens to force public school districts to bend to the will of their most conservative religious parents. They discuss how the case came to be, what the oral arguments told us, and why this case…
- High Unholy Season: Catholic Charities Bureau vs. Working Americans
Liz and Rebecca break down the latest Supreme Court case, Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc. v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission. They explain how the case seeks to expand religious tax exemptions yet again, while threatening the unemployment benefits of thousands of workers. They share…
- Breaking Down Trump's Executive Orders with Dena Sher
Rebecca and Liz welcome Americans United Associate Vice President of Public Policy Dena Sher to the show to discuss President Trump's spate of executive orders. Dena reminds us what executive orders are and we break down the ones that affect religious liberty and the separation of church and…
- Annual Listener Mailbag!
Liz and Rebecca take a break from the regular schedule to answer listener questions. They talk about how the founders viewed state/church separation, the issues our movement should focus on, and how to engage women in the cause of secularism. Resources AU's Project 2025 Hub Abortion resources…
- Skrmetti v. U.S.
SCOTUS is considering whether Tennessee's total ban on transgender medical care for minors violates the Equal Protection Clause, and Liz and Rebecca have some thoughts. They explain what the oral arguments last month revealed and what the stakes are for the real people who will be affected by the…
- Election Postmortem
Liz and Rebecca process the 2024 election results. They discuss the challenges the new administration will bring, some under-the-radar encouraging election results, and how their organizations plan to continue fighting for secular democracy in the months and years ahead. Background National…
- The Crisis Pregnancy Center Crisis with Jenifer McKenna
Alison, Liz, and Rebecca are joined by Jenifer McKenna to talk about the billion dollar crisis pregnancy center industry and its role in the anti-abortion movement. They discuss the massive harms caused by these unregulated fake clinics, Jenifer's work on the first multi-state CPC investigation…
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