Freedom of Beliefs

The U.S. Constitution is far from perfect. It is the law, but it should be open to scrutiny. I want to discuss what I consider to be a significant mistake, freedom of religion.

Before I go any further, I should clarify something. American citizens absolutely should have freedom of religion. The problem is that freedom of religion is too narrow. American citizens should embrace a broader concept, freedom of beliefs.

Without freedom of beliefs, the government can effectively insist that we are only allowed to have beliefs controlled by a religion or by the government. Take a look at vaccine mandates. The government will typically allow exemptions for religious beliefs. This would mean that your beliefs matter only if they are controlled by religion.

Many states have enough sense to include a philosophical exemption. This exemption allows citizens to live by their own beliefs outside the scope of religion. Although most reasons people give for not getting vaccinated are absurd, we need this exemption. Otherwise, the government can dictate beliefs whenever they are not controlled by religion.

In recent years, there has been a lot of pushback against philosophical exemptions. Although you could make a ninth amendment argument for these exemptions, freedom of beliefs is not explicitly guaranteed in the constitution like freedom of religion. This makes it a lot easier for state governments to control what we are allowed to believe outside of religious influences.

Freedom of beliefs encompasses freedom of religion. It also allows citizens to develop and maintain their own belief systems. When states fight against philosophical exemptions, they are fighting against the right to your own belief system. The right to your own belief system is even more fundamental than freedom of religion.

Perhaps this issue hits me harder than most. I'm not anti-vax, but I'm also not religious. Whether or not this specific assault on freedom of beliefs impacts me is not the issue. My concern is that we are giving the government the power to restrict our beliefs. If they can prohibit citizens from believing that vaccines aren't right for them, what else can they prohibit us from believing? Will they tell us that we can't believe in the right to pursue an education free from the constraints of a restrictive schooling environment? Actually, I might be too late on that one.