The Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion, although some states choose to ignore it. In Texas, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Mississippi, Arkansas and Maryland, it is a requirement to believe in some deity to run for public office. However, does the Constitution establish equal rights for those who do not have a religion?

Ever since the United States gained independence in 1783 by signing the Treaty of Paris, the emphasis on equal opportunity (for rich white males) was apparent. Yet, the Articles of Confederation allowed states to make their own voting laws. Religious tests, proof of land ownership, and fees to vote ran unconstrained throughout the South.

Upon completion of the Constitution, the First Amendment ended religious tests and requirements to vote. The document also declared that, “Congress should make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” which should have outlawed such religious laws, in theory.

Although the writer of the decree, Thomas Jefferson, was very specific in the text, people still debate the meaning. He explicitly stated, “Neither a state nor the federal government can set up a church. Neither can pass laws which aid one religion, aid all religions, or prefer one religion over another.”

Regardless of what the founding fathers had in mind, such laws as, “No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office… nor shall anyone be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a supreme being” still exist.

The Constitution is still supreme law, from which the government bases new legislation. Nevertheless, seven states get away with borderline unconstitutional acts by referring to the case, Barron V. Baltimore, ruled in 1833, where it was established that the term “Congress” refers exclusively to the federal government. Therefore, states have the ability to continue making laws in regards to religion, knowing that the federal government cannot regulate them.

States dance around religious freedom by choosing not to read between the lines unless doing so is to their benefit. It is clear what the Constitution intended to happen, but some states still choose to bend the rules.