AUTHOR & COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR AT AMERICANS UNITED
Will Your Rights Be Determined By Someone Else’s Religion?
In his new book, Taking Liberties: Why Religious Freedom Doesn't Give You the Right to Tell Other People What to Do, Rob Boston, director of communications for Americans United for Separation of Church and State and a columnist for The Humanist, says it’s time to restore the real meaning of religious freedom: It means you get to make decisions for yourself, not anyone else.
“As a respected authority on church-state separation and culture-war issues, Rob Boston demonstrates an understanding of religious liberty that is sadly lacking among the God-fearing preachers and politicians of today’s religious Right. Taking Liberties is both entertaining and enlightening, a valuable resource for those who strive for sanity and reason in public policy.”
—David Niose, author of Nonbeliever Nation: The Rise of Secular Americans
“Rob Boston eloquently makes the case for what religious freedom is and what it is not. It is the right for you to promote and try to convince others that what you believe is correct, but it is not the right to have the government do it for you. He backs up his case with many alarming examples of threats to religious liberty in political, cultural, and educational areas, among others. People of all faiths and of none can read and benefit from this thoughtful, well-documented book that shows why ‘live and let live’ on matters of religion can benefit us all.”
—Herb Silverman, founder and president emeritus of the Secular Coalition for America
“A valuable reminder of the importance of religious freedom in America's past and present, and an eviscerating critique of the attempts by the religious Right to use a false language of 'religious liberty' to undermine the very rights they pretend to support.”
—Katherine Stewart, author of The Good News Club: The Christian Right's Stealth Assault on America's Children
“After more than 25 years working at Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Rob Boston knows a thing or two about the Religious Right, their motivations and tactics, and what the future appears to have in store for them. His latest book gets to the heart of the religious freedom we’re guaranteed in the Constitution and how conservatives have tried to eliminate them in a variety of areas."
—Hemant Mehta, editor of Friendly Athiest blog at Patheos.com
"...there’s much food for thought here, and reading the book will arm you with the facts, whatever you decide."
- Norman West,Portland Book Review
Taking Liberties is available through online booksellers like Amazon.com and major bookstores like Barnes & Noble or Books-A-Million.
Covering issues like same-sex marriage, access to contraceptives, religion in public education and censorship, Taking Liberties is a much-needed broadside against the Religious Right's reckless attempt to meddle in our personal lives.
Aggressive, well-funded Religious Right groups are trying to twist the principle of religious freedom to mean their right to run your life. Robert Boston © 2014