Americans United for Separation of Church and State’s President and CEO Rachel Laser issued the following statement in response to U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.) saying that a prayer delivered today by Giani Surinder Singh, a Sikh man, before the House of Representatives “should have never been allowed to happen” and falsely claiming that the United States was “founded as a Christian nation.” Miller first misidentified Singh as Muslim before finally deleting the posts altogether.
“Today’s comments by Rep. Mary Miller are an affront to our nation’s ideals. This is what white Christian Nationalism looks like.
“America was not founded as a ‘Christian nation,’ but as a nation committed to religious freedom for all. The separation of church and state is what guarantees that religious freedom and protects the sanctity of all religions, including Christianity. This episode is a clear reminder about why government-sanctioned prayers in Congress — or any state legislatures, city councils, and school boards — are divisive, unwise and un-American.
“Deleting a social media post is not enough; Miller owes Giani Surinder Singh and the nation an apology.”
On June 25, more than two dozen organizations that advocate for religious freedom, including AU, Interfaith Alliance, the Sikh Coalition, religious denominations, nonreligious groups and civil rights organizations, sent a letter to Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) urging him to condemn Rep. Miller’s comments.
More information is available here on why Americans United opposes government-sponsored prayer.
Americans United is a religious freedom advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, AU educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.
Liz Hayes
Associate Vice President of Communications
[email protected]
