Source: The New York Times

On January 19, 2003 The New York Times reported that "as an assistant professor in the Religion Department at Wesleyan University, the wife of a Haitian man, the mother of an adopted Haitian daughter and a follower of the [voodoo] religion herself, Ms. McAlister has to find a balance between the personal, the professional and the academic... Voodoo is a religion developed by Africans forced to leave their homes behind and work as slaves on Haiti's sugar plantations. A broad religion with millions of faithful and countless...

Source: The Associated Press

http://boston.com/dailynews/017/economy/In_the_workplace_religion_beco:.shtml

On January 17, 2003 The Associated Press reported that "worker complaints of religious discrimination made to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission jumped more than 20 percent last year, driven primarily by claims of retaliation against Muslims... But in a much more gradual trend, complaints... involving a broad range of religions...

Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer

http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/nation/4966009.htm

On January 17, 2003 The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that "anti-Semitism is widespread among America's young adults, with a fourth believing Jews control the media and Wall Street, according to a survey released this week by a Jewish research group... Another key finding is that 37 percent of American adults, or 65 million people, continue to believe Jews were...

Source: The Interfaith Alliance

http://www.interfaithalliance.org/press/index.htm

On January 16, 2003 The Interfaith Alliance reported that "on the heels of remarks made this past weekend by Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, urging Congress to determine religious freedom through legislation, The Interfaith Alliance (TIA) today brought together members of the progressive community to call upon legislators to defend religious liberty in the 108th Congress... 'Today, on...

Source: East Bay Express

On January 15, 2003 the East Bay Express reported that "the mission statement of the Interfaith Pagan Pride Parade defines 'pagans' as: 'Those who follow indigenous, tribal, polytheistic, Nature-based, and Earth-based beliefs.' For anyone who enjoys world music and other international folk arts -- especially from the undeveloped world -- and the spirituality that comes from nature, the 'interfaith pagan' belief system might not be that much of a leap, says Berkeley's Micha Dunston... There are many other pagan orgs around...

Source: Tolerance.org

http://www.tolerance.org/news/article_tol.jsp?id=675

On January 14, 2003 Tolerance.org reported that "still reeling from last month’s deadline for the first round of INS special registration, immigration lawyers and activists across the country braced themselves for a second one last Friday... But Friday’s deadline stood in stark contrast to that of Dec. 16, which resulted in the detainment of more than 500 Iranian-born men and boys...

Source: Rocky Mountain News

http://www.insidedenver.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_1672617,00.html

On January 14, 2003 the Rocky Mountain News reported that "Wiccans, pagans, tarot-card readers and spiritual advisers turned out in force Monday night to give the [Wheat Ridge, CO] City Council some advice: Ditch an ordinance regulating where 'psychic advisers' can locate businesses within the city... But after nearly three hours of debate...

Source: The Chicago Sun-Times

http://www.suntimes.com/output/business/cst-fin-mac14.html

On January 13, 2003 The Chicago Sun-Times reported that "a scientist.. urged a Cook County [IL] judge Monday to reject McDonald's Corp.'s proposed list of 26 groups scheduled to share in a $10 million settlement by the fast-food chain... 'It will set back vegetarianism as a class for 10 to 20 years' because the groups McDonald's favors are hostile to the values the settlement...

Source: The Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A47850-2003Jan12.html

On January 13, 2003 The Washington Post reported that "a historic Virginia law and the constitutional amendment guaranteeing freedom of religion did not intend to 'exclude God from the public forums and from political life,' Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said yesterday... In a short speech to about 150 people gathered in a small park in Fredericksburg...

Source: Star-Telegram

http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/local/4934945.htm

On January 13, 2003 the Star-Telegram reported that "a former atheist who is now president of the Unitarian Universalist Association will push to put the word 'God' into a new statement of principles of the Boston-based, liberal church group, he said Sunday... 'God' was not mentioned in a statement of principles approved in 1984, the Rev. William Sinkford said at First Jefferson...

Source: Los Angeles Times

http://www.latimes.com/la-me-nomeals13jan13001446,0,558409.story

On January 13, 2003 the Los Angeles Times reported that "across the nation, advocates for the homeless have squared off with city officials over everything from sleeping on city sidewalks to outdoor toilets, but in Southern California the debate now centers on... the distribution of food in public... Advocates for the poor see the food handouts as humanitarianism at...

Source: Sun Spot

http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-md.prayer18jan18,0,3783858.story?coll=bal%2Dlocal%2Dheadlines

On January 13, 2003 the Sun Spot reported that "three of the five opening prayers in the [Maryland] Senate this week ended with a reference to Jesus Christ, which some members of the assembly believed to be inappropriate... 'On this question of religion, I think it's important to recognize and to remember...

Source: The Ledger

Source: The Times Union

On January 11, 2003 The Times Union reported that "as leaders of a Buddhist center in the Capital District, my husband, Will, and I often are asked to participate in interfaith activities. The most recent was a program with Congregation Ohav Shalom in Albany on a discussion of the book The Jew in the Lotus by Rodger Kamenetz, which is about a group of rabbis and scholars who visited the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, India, to engage in a dialogue and especially to share their experience with diaspora... The fact that...

Source: Religious News Service

http://pewforum.org/news/display.php?NewsID=1894

On January 10, 2003 the Religious News Service reported that "the Gallup Index of Leading Religious Indicators has reached its lowest level ever, demonstrating the public's most negative overall rating for organized religion since the index began in 1940... The index, a broad assessment of the religiosity of Americans, is based on eight measurements of religious beliefs and practices. A '...