Religious Discrimination

Religious discrimination is defined as “the unfair treatment of a person because of their religious beliefs.” While America was originally founded on the premise of having religious freedom for all, in reality, religious discrimination has existed since the birth of our nation. For example, up until the mid 1900s, many Americans feared Catholics because of an unfounded belief that Catholics were loyal to the pope, and not America. This fear led to violent attacks being carried out against thousands of Catholics. Antisemitism (discrimination against Jewish people) and Islamophobia (discrimination against Muslim people) similarly have deep roots in the United States. Jewish people have been excluded and harassed for centuries, even being expelled from certain US territories during the Civil War. Jewish people were also targeted by white supremacists such as the Klu Klux Klan throughout the 1900s, and still remain subject to violence because of their religious identities today. Islamophobia also has been present in America for decades, escalating significantly in recent years. Following 9/11, many Muslim families were violently attacked and had their properties vandalized.

Religious discrimination isn’t just history; it’s still deeply intertwined with our government and society. Many stereotypes and biases against certain religions are internalized within us, and we carry them into the debate space. In the context of debate, religious discrimination can manifest as unfair treatment from judges, coaches, or other competitors. Some of the Muslim debaters we talked to recall receiving racialized comments from judges in their feedback. They mentioned judges making comments about terrorism in rounds where it was completely irrelevant. Hindu debaters also mentioned facing similar derogatory comments, being called names and insulted by their own teammates simply because of their religious beliefs.

Religious discrimination can also include exclusion, whether purposeful or accidental, from tournaments and teams. Exclusion can occur on an institutional level, not just from individuals. Samantha Gerber, incoming freshman at Brown University, recalls how the scheduling of the 2024 Tournament of Champions led to the exclusion of Jewish debaters who celebrated Passover. When debaters reached out to the administrators to request that the tournament be rescheduled, they were ignored. This is just one example of how tournaments have carelessly excluded students with certain religious identities from competing. The resolutions that the NSDA provides can also lead to the propagation of religious discrimination, especially when they pit certain countries or actors as security issues, which can lead to debaters who are from those countries and share a religious or cultural identity to feel attacked. 

Calling out bias when you see it is an important step you can take to combat religious discrimination. This can include acknowledging your own biases as well as noticing and confronting other people when you notice them say or act in ways that reinforce religious stereotypes. Educating yourself and others is key to fighting discrimination, which is why throughout this series, we will be collecting and sharing stories from debaters who have experienced discrimination in order to shed light on how these issues appear in real life and bring new perspectives to light. If you would like to share your story, fill out the form in our bio, and be sure to share the form with anyone you think would be interested in sharing their story as well. By standing together, we can fight hate.