Montgomery, AL – Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall issued a statement this week responding to a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to vacate a lower-court ruling that had denied religious protections to Amish families operating private schools in rural New York.
The case stems from actions taken by the State of New York, which imposed substantial financial penalties on Amish-only private schools for failing to comply with the state’s school immunization requirements. New York had long allowed religious exemptions to vaccine mandates, but in 2019 state lawmakers eliminated those exemptions, arguing that religious objections were “fake” and “selfish.”
Alabama led a multistate amicus brief supporting the Amish schools, arguing that the state’s enforcement actions violated the First Amendment rights of parents to freely exercise their religion and to raise their children according to sincerely held religious beliefs. In his statement, Marshall said Alabama joined the case to prevent what he described as hostility toward religion from becoming embedded in federal law.
“This ruling vacates a bad decision and confirms we were right to take action,” Marshall said. “While the Supreme Court did not conclusively resolve the issue of religious objections to vaccines, this victory signals to courts that they must respect the religious rights of parents. No family should be forced to choose between raising their children in their faith and accessing a basic education.”
The 21-state brief filed in September argued that the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment was intended to protect individuals from government actions that coerce conduct in violation of religious convictions. The states noted that many of the nation’s founders fled religious persecution and emphasized recent court precedent recognizing the rights of parents to direct the education and upbringing of their children.
The brief also contended that New York’s vaccine mandate was not “neutral and generally applicable” because it allowed certain exemptions while excluding religious ones. The participating states argued that public health considerations do not justify overriding rights of conscience and warned that similar policies could lead to further encroachments on religious freedom by states and the federal government.
In addition to the Supreme Court filing, Alabama led a separate 20-state coalition amicus brief in May 2024 supporting the Amish schools before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, where related issues remain under review.
