Tens of Thousands to Protest Religious Rights Violations in Unconstitutional HHS Mandate in Cities Coast to Coast

CHICAGO, June 5, 2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- This Friday, June 8 at noon local time across the country, tens of thousands of Americans in over 150 cities coast to coast will take to the streets in public protest against the controversial HHS Mandate during the second nationwide Stand Up for Religious Freedom Rally.

The Stand Up Rally will be held at federal buildings, Congressional offices and historic sites in such cities as Chicago, New York, Detroit, San Francisco, Minneapolis and Philadelphia. The full list of rally sites is available at StandUpRally.com. (Some rally start times vary, check website for time, location and local contacts).

The date for the Stand Up Rally was chosen to highlight the HHS Mandate's unconstitutional infringement of religious freedom, coming just weeks before the highly anticipated ruling on Obamacare from the U. S. Supreme Court, expected at the end of June.

"If Obamacare is ruled unconstitutional, we must ensure that religious freedom will be protected in subsequent health care legislation" explained Stand Up Rally national co-director Monica Miller.

"But if Obamacare is not struck down, we'll be sending the federal authorities a clear message that the faith based institutions and private businesses affected by the HHS Mandate simply will not comply with it."

"The federal government has no business defining the scope of religious ministry," said Miller, referring to a "religious exemption" in the HHS Mandate drawn so narrowly that it excludes such religious institutions as Catholic schools and hospitals.

The June 8 Rally will take place on the 223rd anniversary of the day James Madison introduced the Bill of Rights to the 1st Congress, including what would become the First Amendment.

"The First Amendment's historic safeguard of our most basic freedoms is now under attack by the Obama administration's HHS Mandate," said Stand Up Rally national co-director Eric Scheidler. "On June 8, 2012, we will stand up for the First Amendment and demand that all our health care laws respect religious freedom."

Scheidler and Miller have built a coalition of 65 religious and civil rights organizations -- including the Alliance Defense Fund, Association of Mature American Citizens, the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, Freedom for Americans, the National Black Pro-Life Coalition and the Thomas More Society -- devoted to overturning the HHS Mandate.

The Stand Up for Religious Freedom Coalition held their first rally on March 23, with over 63,000 citizens of all faiths attending local rallies in 145 cities. Twenty-eight Catholic bishops, along with scores of Protestant and Jewish religious leaders participated in the first rally.

With the Supreme Court's Obamacare ruling coming and the November elections in sight, the June 8 Stand Up Rally is expected to even larger crowds with 75,000 people or more across the country.

For more information visit StandUpRally.com