In a recent New York Times op-ed, Brookings scholar Jonathan Rauch and co-author David Blankenhorn argue that linking federal civil unions to guarantees of religious freedom is a way to head off a long-term, scorched-earth debate over gay marriage and religious liberty.
On March 13, Rauch and Blankenhorn discussed their proposal at a forum moderated by Brookings Senior Fellow William Galston. Robin Wilson, editor of Same-Sex Marriage and Religious Liberty: Emerging Conflicts, discussed the church-state conflicts that same-sex unions may engender. Nathan Diament and Lara Schwarz offered thoughts from religious and gay rights perspectives.
This event is part of the Governing Ideas series intended to broaden the discussion of governance issues through forums on timely and relevant books on history, culture, legal norms and practices, values and religion.
After the program, panelists took audience questions.