The Price of Outsourcing Governance: The US Supreme Court's Use of Privatization to Redefine the Contours of Church-State Separation, with Amitai Heller

This talk examines how the government’s decades-long shift to privatized service delivery has reshaped church–state separation. It shows how this neoliberal turn has become a legal tool for the Supreme Court to expand religious influence by opening new avenues for state entanglement with religious providers. As core civic duties are increasingly delegated to private actors, recent precedent makes it impossible to uphold the civil libertarian consensus on church–state boundaries, raising the question: is outsourcing essential obligations worth eroding America’s tradition of religious pluralism?

Amitai Heller serves as the Legal Director for the American Humanist Association, where he utilizes his extensive litigation background to advance civil rights. Previously, he led successful, high-profile cases advocating for crucial civil rights issues, including the rights of dying individuals (Compassion & Choices) and the equal treatment of people with disabilities (Disability Rights Louisiana). He holds a BA from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a JD from the City University of New York School of Law.

This event is co-sponsored by UCSB's Legal Humanities Initiative.