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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices
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To: J_F_Shepard who wrote (847078)4/2/2015 2:56:17 PM
From: one_less  Read Replies (2) of 1576972
 
Gail Collins in her column today said :

"The
federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act is known as RFRA despite the
unfortunate resemblance to the sound of a hoarse Labrador retriever. It was
passed in 1993 in response to the problems of Native Americans in Oregon, who
smoked peyote in a religious ceremony and were then fired from their jobs and
denied unemployment benefits.


Peyote is a cactus found in the desert SW USA and Mexico. Native Americans in Oregon have a history of using shrooms but did not use peyote historically. Even if they are growing it in Oregon in modern times, smoking it is not likely and it would be hard to justify it as a traditional religious ceremony for Oregonians. I was in Oregon in the 70s and don't know what changed between then and the 90s but that doesn't seem right.

I doubt they were smoking it, at least as a common practice. You and Gail need to check your facts.

Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith (1990) "This Supreme Court case was a step backwards for the Native American Church and other Native American groups that used peyote for religious purposes. The case revolved around Alfred Smith and Galen Black, who had been fired for using peyote while working at a drug rehabilitation clinic. When the two filed for unemployment benefits, they were denied, as their loss of employment was deemed a result of professional misconduct. The Oregon Court of Appeals and the Oregon Supreme Court decided that Smith and Black had been in the right, having only consumed peyote in a religious ceremony. However, the United States Supreme Court reversed this decision. The decision was based on the justices' belief that Oregon's anti-peyote law did not go against First Amendment religious rights, as it prohibited peyote use in all people, not just Native Americans

The decision reached in Employment Division of Oregon v Smith was reversed in 1994 with the passing of the American Indian Religious Freedom Act. This legislation legalized peyote when used in religious ceremonies by the Native American Church."

peyote.net
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