John Whitehead's Commentary
Religious Apartheid for American Troops Abroad
"If you have to practice your religion, do it in secret."
--Elaine Sciolino, "For Outsiders, Worship Is Risk in Saudi Arabia"
In an effort to appease the religious intolerance of other countries, American soldiers are being forced to leave their religion at home as they depart to fight for our liberties. According to various news sources, those being deployed to the Middle East are being instructed by unnamed military leaders not to wear religious jewelry or other outward symbols of their faith.
As one military chaplain stationed in Saudi Arabia remarked, "We have all these fine young American men and women over here. They're great Americans. They're great soldiers. Yet they're expected to surrender their religious practices when they arrive."
Unfortunately, this is nothing new in the way of military protocol. During the Persian Gulf War, reports surfaced of numerous occasions in which service members were prevented by their superiors from exercising their religious faith. Human rights organizations have documented that, due to pressure by the Saudi government, Christian and Jewish allied troops were instructed not to wear symbols of their faith while stationed in Saudi Arabia.
Such observations are corroborated by the experiences of many Gulf War veterans who have detailed prohibitions on outward signs of faith and restrictions on the use of Bibles and hymnals in church services. Some American chaplains stationed in Saudi have recounted how they were prevented from wearing crosses or other signs of their ministry, that Bibles and hymnals could not be used, and that church services for the troops only be "counseling sessions."
Christmases abroad have presented American troops with particularly grim scenarios. American troops stationed in Saudi Arabia have not been permitted to openly celebrate Christmas on American military bases for fear of offending their Saudi hosts. One serviceman recalls the Armed Services Network radio station in Dhahran playing instrumental Christmas carols all day long, since the Saudis objected to the religious content of the lyrics. Even Christmas services had to be kept under wraps, in mess halls and tents, invisible to the world. According to Daniel Pipes, director of the Middle East Forum, "the goal was for no Saudi to be made to suffer the knowledge that Christians were at prayer."
American service members stationed in the Middle East have continued to experience such suppression of their faith by their own government. Until Air Force Lt. Col. Martha McSally bravely stepped forward last year, American servicewomen stationed in Saudi Arabia were required to wear an abaya and to be escorted by servicemen while off-base. There have also been reports that the military continues to prohibit service members from outwardly affirming their faith by wearing a cross, Star of David, or other religious symbols.
It would serve our military leaders well to remember that the United States Constitution applies to American citizens in whatever part of the world they may find themselves--whether it be Kuwait, Saudi Arabia or Afghanistan. In fact, our American officers take an oath to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic."
Like any other part of the federal government, the military is required to respect and insure the individual rights found in the Constitution. For example, the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment protects citizens from laws that restrict the free exercise of their religion.
Thus, unless there is a sincere and compelling reason for doing so, service members cannot--and should not--be prevented from wearing small crosses or other religious symbols or otherwise openly practicing their faith. Not even respect for another nation's cultural norms or political sensibilities should justify the denial of our soldiers' First Amendment rights. Indeed, our Constitution does not--and should not--bow to the religious intolerance of other nations.
It is critical that our Department of Defense take affirmative steps to ensure the full religious freedom of American service members preparing for military action in Iraq. Such actions should include, at a minimum, a review of all orders and instructional briefings issued to troops relating to religious adornments and expressions and a rescinding of any directives that restrict personal religious expression. To do less is to sacrifice the very freedom we are supposed to be fighting for.
In remarks delivered to Congress shortly after the fateful events of Sept.11, President Bush described the terrorists as being barbarians who "hate our freedoms, our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and disagree with each other."
Unless we start taking steps today to safeguard the freedoms that we claim to cherish, freedoms that have made America great, we will have ceded victory to the barbarians.
Constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead is founder and president of The Rutherford Institute. He can be contacted at johnw@rutherford.org.
--Elaine Sciolino, "For Outsiders, Worship Is Risk in Saudi Arabia"
In an effort to appease the religious intolerance of other countries, American soldiers are being forced to leave their religion at home as they depart to fight for our liberties. According to various news sources, those being deployed to the Middle East are being instructed by unnamed military leaders not to wear religious jewelry or other outward symbols of their faith.
As one military chaplain stationed in Saudi Arabia remarked, "We have all these fine young American men and women over here. They're great Americans. They're great soldiers. Yet they're expected to surrender their religious practices when they arrive."
Unfortunately, this is nothing new in the way of military protocol. During the Persian Gulf War, reports surfaced of numerous occasions in which service members were prevented by their superiors from exercising their religious faith. Human rights organizations have documented that, due to pressure by the Saudi government, Christian and Jewish allied troops were instructed not to wear symbols of their faith while stationed in Saudi Arabia.
Such observations are corroborated by the experiences of many Gulf War veterans who have detailed prohibitions on outward signs of faith and restrictions on the use of Bibles and hymnals in church services. Some American chaplains stationed in Saudi have recounted how they were prevented from wearing crosses or other signs of their ministry, that Bibles and hymnals could not be used, and that church services for the troops only be "counseling sessions."
Christmases abroad have presented American troops with particularly grim scenarios. American troops stationed in Saudi Arabia have not been permitted to openly celebrate Christmas on American military bases for fear of offending their Saudi hosts. One serviceman recalls the Armed Services Network radio station in Dhahran playing instrumental Christmas carols all day long, since the Saudis objected to the religious content of the lyrics. Even Christmas services had to be kept under wraps, in mess halls and tents, invisible to the world. According to Daniel Pipes, director of the Middle East Forum, "the goal was for no Saudi to be made to suffer the knowledge that Christians were at prayer."
American service members stationed in the Middle East have continued to experience such suppression of their faith by their own government. Until Air Force Lt. Col. Martha McSally bravely stepped forward last year, American servicewomen stationed in Saudi Arabia were required to wear an abaya and to be escorted by servicemen while off-base. There have also been reports that the military continues to prohibit service members from outwardly affirming their faith by wearing a cross, Star of David, or other religious symbols.
It would serve our military leaders well to remember that the United States Constitution applies to American citizens in whatever part of the world they may find themselves--whether it be Kuwait, Saudi Arabia or Afghanistan. In fact, our American officers take an oath to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic."
Like any other part of the federal government, the military is required to respect and insure the individual rights found in the Constitution. For example, the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment protects citizens from laws that restrict the free exercise of their religion.
Thus, unless there is a sincere and compelling reason for doing so, service members cannot--and should not--be prevented from wearing small crosses or other religious symbols or otherwise openly practicing their faith. Not even respect for another nation's cultural norms or political sensibilities should justify the denial of our soldiers' First Amendment rights. Indeed, our Constitution does not--and should not--bow to the religious intolerance of other nations.
It is critical that our Department of Defense take affirmative steps to ensure the full religious freedom of American service members preparing for military action in Iraq. Such actions should include, at a minimum, a review of all orders and instructional briefings issued to troops relating to religious adornments and expressions and a rescinding of any directives that restrict personal religious expression. To do less is to sacrifice the very freedom we are supposed to be fighting for.
In remarks delivered to Congress shortly after the fateful events of Sept.11, President Bush described the terrorists as being barbarians who "hate our freedoms, our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and disagree with each other."
Unless we start taking steps today to safeguard the freedoms that we claim to cherish, freedoms that have made America great, we will have ceded victory to the barbarians.
Constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead is founder and president of The Rutherford Institute. He can be contacted at johnw@rutherford.org.
ABOUT JOHN W. WHITEHEAD
Constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead is founder and president of The Rutherford Institute. His most recent books are the best-selling Battlefield America: The War on the American People, the award-winning A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State, and a debut dystopian fiction novel, The Erik Blair Diaries. Whitehead can be contacted at staff@rutherford.org. Nisha Whitehead is the Executive Director of The Rutherford Institute. Information about The Rutherford Institute is available at www.rutherford.org.
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