Dear Politicians — I Don't Care About Your Religion, I Care About My Rights

 Whether it's "thoughts and prayers," "God's will," or "the natural order of things," politicians of faith have a tendency to lean on religious reasoning. Take Mike Pence, who last July declared, "I'm a Christian, a conservative, and a Republican, in that order." Which is all well and good, until you consider that Pence's commitment to what he perceives as Christian values are actively infringing on the rights of others —  the LGBTQAI+ community, Americans of color, and women, among others. By all means, politicians, tout your faith; when your religious beliefs are blocking my human and legal rights, however, we have a problem.Every citizen, whether in political office or otherwise, has a right to their faith. Whether you worship in a mosque, a temple, a church, a synagogue, or any other space of your choosing, you unequivocally have the human right to do so — and this should be protected at all costs. Equally, another citizen's right to atheism, agnosticism, Humanism, or no faith whatsoever is a human right. It must be protected.

When forced to compete, human rights must trump religious rights each time.

And yet. With the advent of the Trump administration, and even long before it, religious rights have had a tendency to trump human and legal rights in the United States. Take the Hobby Lobby case, which ruled that some evangelical employers can block their employees from getting affordable birth control. Or the wave of anti-abortion legislation that has swept the country in recent years, infringing on every woman's Roe v. Wade-given legal right to a termination.  

 When religious reasoning is used as a defense, or an excuse, for taking away another person's rights, then we are forced to weigh the two against each other: Human rights, or religious rights?Both are critical to a democracy. Both must be defended. Yet, when forced to compete, human rights must trump religious rights each time.Let's take a closer look at the politicians who have leaned on their religion to support legislation, or a lack of legislation, that oppressed human rights. Last March, Rep. Jodey Arrington of Texas quoted the Bible in his push to cut food stamps: "Scripture tells us ... ‘for even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: If a man will not work, he shall not eat." To defend Roy Moore's alleged predatory behavior — which involved at one point being banned from a mall for reportedly hitting on teenage girls — an Alabama state auditor brought up the Biblical story of Zachariah and Elizabeth. An Oklahoma politician claimed that global warming doesn't stand to reason because "God is still up there."