Charles C. Haynes

Dr. Charles C. Haynes is director of the Religious Freedom Education Project at the Newseum and a senior scholar at the First Amendment Center. He writes and speaks extensively on religious liberty and religion in American public life.

Haynes is best known for his work on First Amendment issues in public schools. Over the past two decades, he has been the principal organizer and drafter of consensus guidelines on religious liberty in schools, endorsed by a broad range of religious and educational organizations. In January 2000, three of these guides were distributed by the U.S. Department of Education to every public school in the nation. (See also A Parent's Guide to Religion in the Public Schools, A Teacher's Guide to Religion in the Public Schools and Public Schools & Religious Communities.)

Haynes is the author or co-author of six books, including First Freedoms: A Documentary History of First Amendment Rights in America (2006) and Religion in American Public Life. His column, Inside the First Amendment, appears in newspapers nationwide.

He is a founding board member of the Character Education Partnership and serves on the steering committee of the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools and the American Bar Association Advisory Commission on Public Education. He chairs the Committee on Religious Liberty of the National Council of Churches.

Widely quoted in news magazines and major newspapers, Haynes is also a frequent guest on television and radio. He has been profiled in The Wall Street Journal and on ABC’s "Evening News." In 2008 he received the Virginia First Freedom Award from the Council for America’s First Freedom.

Haynes holds a master’s degree from Harvard Divinity School and a doctorate from Emory University.

Posts by Charles C. Haynes:

Featured Post, Inside the First Amendment, Religion | | May 16, 2013

Graduation prayer, fighting over a lost cause

School officials in Lake City, Arkansas have come up with a novel solution to the fight over prayer at graduation: No prayer, no graduation.

Featured Post, Inside the First Amendment, Speech | | May 2, 2013

When students protest abortion, can schools draw the line?

Students with deep religious convictions are fast turning public schools into the newest battleground over abortion – much to the dismay of beleaguered school officials.

Featured Post, Inside the First Amendment, Religion | | April 18, 2013

No flowers for gay wedding: Discrimination or religious freedom?

Lawsuit against a florist who refused to do flower arrangements for a gay wedding pits rights of citizens to be free from discrimination in places of public accommodation against the rights of religious business owners to follow their conscience in matters of faith.

Featured Post, Inside the First Amendment | | April 4, 2013

Ground Zero Cross: A display is not a shrine

On March 28, a group of atheists in New York lost round one in their legal battle to keep the “Ground Zero Cross” out of the National September 11 Museum in lower Manhattan.

Featured Post, Inside the First Amendment, Religion Analysis | | March 21, 2013

Why fifth graders have rights too

To what extent do students have First Amendment rights? Recently, a three judge panel of the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals has written another chapter in that debate by ruling in favor of a fifth grader who was barred by school officials from handing out invitations to a Christmas party at her church.

Inside the First Amendment, Religion | | March 7, 2013

Battling over yoga in public schools

Is yoga secular or religious? That’s the conundrum at the heart of a new legal battle in Encinitas, California over the teaching of yoga in public schools.

Establishment Clause, Featured Post | | February 21, 2013

When do student prayers cross the First Amendment line?

Students are free to pray in public schools – except when they aren’t.

Establishment Clause, Featured Post, Inside the First Amendment | | February 7, 2013

In Texas schools, failing grade for Bible courses

Fifty years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional the devotional use of the Bible by public schools, in its ruling on Abington Township v. Schempp.
But many school districts in the Lone Star State still haven’t gotten the message, according to a report released last month by the Texas Freedom Network (TFN) entitled [...]

Featured Post, Inside the First Amendment, Religion Commentary | | January 25, 2013

Perils and politics of inaugural prayers

In today’s deeply divided America, who prays the ceremonial prayers is fast becoming a religio-political weathervane pointing in the direction cultural winds are blowing.

Inside the First Amendment, Religion Commentary | | January 10, 2013

In 2013, escalating battles over claims of conscience

Attempts by the state to burden religious practices are always hotly contested – and that’s as it should be in a nation founded on religious freedom.

Inside the First Amendment, Religion Commentary | | December 28, 2012

In 2012, the rise of a new religious America

Why the end of the Protestant hegemony in America will be no loss for religious people of any tradition, including Protestants.

Inside the First Amendment, Religion Commentary | | December 13, 2012

Religious freedom: not just for the religious

Atheists, humanists and other nonreligious people face discrimination and persecution in many parts of the world, but nonbelief should also be a protected human right.

Inside the First Amendment, Religion Commentary | | November 29, 2012

In Christmas wars, it’s all or nothing

Maybe it’s time atheists declared victory and stay home for the holidays — let Christians set up Nativity displays in public spaces unanswered in December and save atheist messages for another time.

Inside the First Amendment, Religion Commentary | | November 16, 2012

Mitt, Mormons, and the religious test that wasn’t

With Romney’s candidacy, we moved closer to the First Amendment promise of full religious freedom — a level playing field in the public square for citizens of all faiths and none.

Inside the First Amendment, Religion Commentary | | November 2, 2012

In East Texas, does cheering for God erase church-state line?

If cheerleaders in Kountze, Texas, prevail in defending their practice of holding up Bible-verse banners at football games, their victory could open the door for more student religious expression at school-sponsored events, delivered by members of various school groups.

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About The First Amendment Center

We support the First Amendment and build understanding of its core freedoms through education, information and entertainment.

The center serves as a forum for the study and exploration of free-expression issues, including freedom of speech, of the press and of religion, and the rights to assemble and to petition the government.

Founded by John Seigenthaler, the First Amendment Center is an operating program of the Freedom Forum and is associated with the Newseum and the Diversity Institute. The center has offices in the John Seigenthaler Center at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., and at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.

The center’s programs, including the Religious Freedom Education Project at the Newseum, provide education and information to the public and groups including First Amendment scholars and experts, educators, government policy makers, legal experts and students. The center is nonpartisan and does not lobby, litigate or provide legal advice. See First Amendment Center Fact Sheet and FAQs. See internships info.

The center’s website, www.firstamendmentcenter.org, is one of the most authoritative sources of news, information and commentary in the nation on First Amendment issues. It features daily updates on news about First Amendment-related developments, as well as detailed reports about U.S. Supreme Court cases involving the First Amendment, and commentary, analysis and special reports on free expression, press freedom and religious-liberty issues. Support the work of the First Amendment Center.

1 For All

1 for All is a national nonpartisan program designed to build understanding and support for First Amendment freedoms. 1 for All provides teaching materials to the nation’s schools, supports educational events on America’s campuses and reminds the public that the First Amendment serves everyone, regardless of faith, race, gender or political leanings. It is truly one amendment for all. Visit 1 for All at http://1forall.us/

Help tomorrow’s citizens find their voice: Teach the First Amendment

The most basic liberties guaranteed to Americans – embodied in the 45 words of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – assure Americans a government that is responsible to its citizens and responsive to their wishes.

These 45 words are as alive and important today as they were more than 200 years ago. These liberties are neither liberal nor conservative, Democratic nor Republican – they are the basis for our representative democratic form of government.

We know from studies beginning in 1997 by the nonpartisan First Amendment Center, and from studies commissioned by the Knight Foundation and others, that few adult Americans or high school students can name the individual five freedoms that make up the First Amendment.

The lesson plans – drawn from materials prepared by the Newseum and the First Amendment Center – will draw young people into an exploration of how their freedoms began and how they operate in today’s world. Students will discuss just how far individual rights extend, examining rights in the school environment and public places. The lessons may be used in history and government, civics, language arts and journalism, art and debate classes. They may be used in sections or in their entirety. Many of these lesson plans indicate an overall goal, offer suggestions on how to teach the lesson and list additional resources and enrichment activities.

See more about lesson plans.

First Amendment Moot Court Competition

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – the cornerstone of American democracy – is the focus of the National First Amendment Moot Court Competition. Recognized as one of the nation's finest constitutional-law competitions, this annual event features a current First Amendment controversy.

During the two-day competition in February, each team will participate in a minimum of four rounds, arguing a hypothetical based on a current First Amendment controversy before panels of accomplished jurists, legal scholars and attorneys.

Past participants in the National First Amendment Moot Court Competition have represented law schools nationwide, from Brooklyn Law School to Duke University to Arizona State to Harvard.

The 23rd Annual National First Amendment Moot Court Competition is Feb. 21-22, 2013. See registration information and details about the competition.

FIRST AMENDMENT CENTER ARCHIVES

State of the First Amendment survey reports

The State of the First Amendment surveys, commissioned since 1997 by the First Amendment Center and Newseum, are a regular check on how Americans view their first freedoms of speech, press, assembly, religion and petition.

The periodic surveys examine public attitudes toward freedom of speech, press, religion and the rights of assembly and petition; and sample public opinion on contemporary issues involving those freedoms. See the reports.