Abstract
The article examines the USA’s international religious freedom policy during the presidency of Donald Trump. It argues that the Trump administration consistently prioritised America’s international religious freedom (IRF) policy according to Judeo-Christian values. This contrasted with previous administrations, which did not pursue such a clear Christocentric approach. The Trump administration has pursued the policy with vigour, drawing on Judeo-Christian ideology and prioritising religious freedom above other human rights, such as equality for women and sexual minorities. The article begins with a brief summary of the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA), signed into law by President Clinton in 1998. It then examines the influence of Judeo-Christian ideology on Trump’s international religious freedom policy. To do this, the article surveys three recent initiatives: the Commission on Unalienable Rights, the annual Ministerial to Advance International Religious Freedom, and the International Religious Freedom Alliance. I argue that collectively the initiatives promote the paramountcy of Judeo-Christian ideology. The article concludes that the Trump administration’s international religious freedom is strongly informed by a Judeo-Christian ideology which seeks to place religious freedom first in a hierarchy of human rights, while relegating others, especially equality for females and sexual minorities, to a lesser position.
Highlights
IntroductionInternational religious freedom (IRF) is an issue of great significance for American foreign policy
International religious freedom (IRF) is an issue of great significance for American foreign policy.From the 1990s, International religious freedom was a key concern for both religious and secular human rights advocacy groups (Haynes 2008)
President Clinton signed into law the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) in 19981
Summary
International religious freedom (IRF) is an issue of great significance for American foreign policy. From the 1990s, International religious freedom was a key concern for both religious and secular human rights advocacy groups (Haynes 2008). IRF policy, which emphasised Pompeo’s personal view that religious freedom is first among human rights (Casey 2017, 2020; Stewart 2020). Religions 2020, 11, 385 human rights advocacy groups, both religious and secular While they did not disagree on the desirability of international religious freedom, they questioned Pompeo’s Judeo-Christian approach (Verma 2020). The article concludes that while the Trump administration brought fresh attention to America’s IRF policy, the application of Judeo-Christian values and beliefs had the possibly unintended impact of undermining the rights of women and sexual minorities. The overall aim was to employ a range of appropriate sources in order to present a balanced view of the Trump administration’s IRF policy
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