Aldarwish 1

Name: Ahmed Aldarwish

Course: UWRT 1102
Date: 05/04/2016
Annotated Bibliography on the Freedom of Religion
1. Bielefeldt, Heine. "Misperceptions of Freedom of Religion or Belief." Human Rights
Quarterly 35.1 (2013): 33-68.
This article by Heiner Bielefeldt takes an in depth analysis on how the contemporary society has
been undermining the freedom of religion and its status as an international human right.
According to the author, certain principles like equality, universalism, and general freedom are
all associated with this right and they are inalienable. However, these doctrines have been
ignored and violated from time to time by the society. Bielefeldt gives examples of situations
where the freedom of religion has been infringed on as; when individuals defame certain
religions, the promotion of ideological versions of state secularism, and killing of believers of
specific religious faiths. The article goes ahead and discusses the recommendable ways that
governments and religious leaders can harmonize the peaceful co-existence between persons of
different religions. The discussion by Bielefeldt is important because it shows the significance of
religion or belief as a universal human right that ought to be respected and upheld by every
citizen.

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2. Bazelion, Emily. "What Are the Limits of Religious Liberty?" 7 July 2015. The New
York Times Magazine. 9 May 2016. www.nytimes.com
This article by Emily Bazelon discusses the extent that the religious freedom should be enjoyed
without infringing on other rights that are equally important by virtue of the rules of natural law.
Religious tolerance in the United States of America has been on the forefront by all citizens as
the country can be said to be well advanced than its neighbors on this issue. Emily gives the
example of France where it is illegal for a Muslim lady to wear a head scarf at a public school. In
the United States of America, it is the opposite; religious freedom is respected. The does not
permit a company to fire or refuse to hire a Muslim woman because she wears her head scarf.
This assertion can be proven by the decision of the Supreme Court that Samantha Elauf who had
lost a job at a Kids store because she wore a head scarf contrary to the company policy was
wrongly dismissed. The author further discusses how each of the human rights under the
constitution, including freedom of religion, ought to be respected and practiced in accordance
with the law.

3. Donald, Alice and Erica Howard. "The right to Freedom of Religion or Belief and its
Intersection with other Rights." The Human Rights Journal 15. 5 (2015): 13-19. JSTOR.
Web.9 2016.
This research was carried out to evaluate how the right to freedom of religion is connected to
other human rights like the freedom of assembly, expression, and to be protected from
discrimination. The researchers particularly single out the tension that has been rising between
the rights of individuals who practice sex relationships/ marriages versus the ones whose

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religious freedom does not tolerate the practice. In Europe and its environs, the matter is a legal,
religious and political controversy that has created huge rifts between citizens. Christian and
Muslim organizations have been on the frontline to criticize anti-discriminatory laws that support
the rights of gays and lesbians as directly conflicting with the freedom of belief or religion. The
aim of the authors of this article is to assist the world in amicably solving this controversial issue
without creating hatred between the contrasting parties. There are standards and principles that
are included in both human rights and equality law as expressed in the Charter of Fundamental
Rights of the European Union, the relevant United Nations declarations and treaties, the
European Convention on Human Rights, and other pertinent authorities by the court systems.