Prejudice and the Blaine Amendments

During the coming weeks, the Supreme Court will hand down its decision in Trinity Lutheran of Columbia, Inc. v. Comer. The state of Missouri has a program reimbursing nonprofits that pave their playgrounds with recycled tires, and the case arose after the state in 2012 denied reimbursement to the Trinity Lutheran Church. Missouri's justification was that its Blaine Amendment prohibits the state from funding religious entities. Trinity Lutheran sued, arguing that this discrimination against religiously-affiliated organizations is unconstitutional.