A law and policy center based at Union Theological Seminary promoting freedom of religion, religious pluralism, and social justice.
https://lawrightsreligion.org/
The Law, Rights & Religion Project
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LRRP’s full explainer on 3 Myths About Religious Freedom and Abortion:
lawrightsreligion.org/our-work/3-m... (4/4)
When Catholic hospitals are bound by anti-abortion restrictions, and state law also bans abortion, patients have nowhere to go. That is the crisis LRRP’s Not Here or There paper documents. (2/4)
1 in 6 U.S. hospital beds are in Catholic institutions. In many regions, they are the only option. And state bans eliminated any possible workarounds. (3/4)
Myth #1: religious freedom arguments for abortion are a recent invention. Reality: religious communities have invoked their faith in defense of abortion access for decades. (1/4)
Myth #2: only conservative Christians can use religious freedom law. Reality: RFRA was designed to protect everyone—including those whose faith supports abortion access. (2/4)
The Law, Rights & Religion Project
Catholic hospitals have long said ‘not here’ to patients seeking abortion care, so patients went elsewhere. State abortion bans changed that calculus entirely. (1/4)
Myth #3: these cases never win. Reality: courts have found in favor of religious right to abortion claims. Indiana is one example. The legal tools are real, and they are being used. (3/4)
In 2021, LRRP published a report documenting hospital-level abortion bans in the South, with a focus on patterns of denial, delay, and harm shaped by faith and institutional culture. What we found then has only gotten worse.
Faith-based organizations are asking: Does RFRA protect our food pantries, legal clinics, and emergency shelters from federal immigration enforcement? LRRP’s Immigration Report maps the legal landscape:
This 2025 paper, co-authored by Director Liz Reiner Platt, Dr. Lori Freedman, and Dr. Debra Stulberg, is the full legal and policy analysis of what happens when institutional restriction and state law converge. (4/4)
lawrightsreligion.org/our-work/not...
