Subject: U.S. Constitutional and USAF Regulatory Violations at Joint Base Andrews Under Your Direct Command
Date: May 12, 2023 at 7:56:12 AM MDT
To: Colonel Parkin C. Bryson
Cc: Colonel Todd E. Randolph, Air Force Chief of Staff Charles Q. Brown Jr., Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall
...Col. Bryson, as per our just completed telecon…..the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) is representing 15 individual USAF airman complainants at Joint Base Andrews under your direct command as their 316th Vice Wing Commander in this unfortunate matter….the illicit actions of your Security Forces gate guards, whom are all armed and in their USAF uniforms and clearly on duty MUST be stopped immediately!!….their statements are an absolutely CLEAR violation of, inter alia, Air Force Instruction (AFI) 1-1, Section 2.12!!
…(please see below)…
…these USAF Security Forces personnel are dishonorably destroying good order, morale, discipline and unit cohesion by making these clearly sectarian Christian statements to personnel entering onto Joint Base Andrews through the entry gates….no other faith nor non-faith traditions say this obviously sectarian phrase…..of MRFF’s 15 USAF clients here under your and Col Randolph’s command, 8 are actually Christians themselves, both Protestant and Roman Catholic….the others are Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Atheist and Agnostic….
…..none of them felt that they could register this grievances here to their chains of command nor file an IG and/or EEO complaint without facing the very real prospects of insidious reprisal, retribution revenge and retaliation…..none of which speaks well about your current command climate there…
……please advise ASAP as to the action you will be taking here to immediately cease and deist from further violations of the Constitution’s separation of church and state mandates in the First Amendment, as well as in Clause 3 of Article 6 (“No Religious Test”), germane, construing, Constitutional, Federal caselaw, all of the Directives, Instructions and Regulations at DoD and the USAF as well as the mandates of UCMJ and particularly the Core Values of the USAF; "Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence In All We Do"
….thank you, Colonel…..MRFF eagerly awaits your and the 316th Wing Commander's (Col. Randolph’s) expeditious action here to justly eradicate this abhorrent, unconstitutional, Christian proselytizing activity currently being undertaken by your armed USAF Security Forces gate guards under your direct command at Joint Base Andrews …
Michael L. “Mikey” Weinstein, Esq.
Founder and President
Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF)
505-250-7727
From: (Active Duty USAF Officer’s E-mail Address Withheld)
Subject: Have a Blessed Day by SF AD Gate Guards
Date: May 12, 2023 at 6:31:55 AM MDT
Mikey, I’m an Active Duty Air Force Officer stationed at JB Andrews, MD. I’m writing to and seeking MRFF assistance in ensuring the 316th Security Forces Base Defenders comply with AFI 1-1 and stop greeting drivers with “have a blessed day” as their IDs are checked.
Probably about 10% of the time going through the various gates at Andrews several Active Duty Guards who are armed and in uniform will greet those coming through the gate with “have a blessed day.” This statement is clearly meant as a Christian overture toward Jesus blessing those driving onto JB Andrews. I’ve noticed several different Airman who will say this, so it is not just one SF (Security Forces) Airman who is failing in their duty to comply with AFI 1-1.
Again, this is a violation of AFI 1-1 and they should immediately cease with this greeting. Should they continue to violate AFI 1-1, it will erode trust that is placed upon them to defend the base. If they can’t do the basics like comply with AFI 1-1, how can they be trusted in their core capacity?
I’m reaching out to MRFF because I know that you will respond swiftly and restore our hope in our Airmen and restore integrity and patriotism to JB Andrews. (Active Duty USAF Officer’s name, rank, AFSC and unit all withheld)
Air Force Instruction (AFI) 1-1, Section 2.12 (emphasis added):
2.12. Balance of Free Exercise of Religion and Establishment Clause. Leaders at all levels must balance constitutional protections for their own free exercise of religion, including individual expressions of religious beliefs, and the constitutional prohibition against governmental establishment of religion. They must ensure their words and actions cannot reasonably be construed to be officially endorsing or disapproving of, or extending preferential treatment for any faith, belief, or absence of belief.
Parker v. Levy:
An individual's right to free expression is not as absolute in the military as it is in the civilian world. The Supreme Court made this very clear in the 1974 case Parker v. Levy, when it said (emphasis added):
“This Court has long recognized that the military is, by necessity, a specialized society separate from civilian society... While the members of the military are not excluded from the protection granted by the First Amendment, the different character of the military community and of the military mission requires a different application of those protections. The fundamental necessity for obedience, and the consequent necessity for imposition of discipline, may render permissible within the military that which would be constitutionally impermissible outside it ... Speech that is protected in the civil population may nonetheless undermine the effectiveness of response to command. If it does, it is constitutionally unprotected.” 417 U.S.733 (1974)
