About us
The International Association for Religious Freedom (IARF) is a charitable organization that works for religious freedom around the world. Founded in 1900, it is the oldest international group that promotes dialogue among religions.
WHO WE ARE
IARF-International includes organizations and individuals from five continents, 23 countries, and various religious traditions. IARF has chapters in nine countries.
WHAT WE DO
IARF-US provides information on barriers to religious freedom as well as briefings on spiritual practices through our website, newsletter, alerts, and presentations.
We collaborate with other organizations involved with issues of religious freedom and promote discussion of action steps, including organizing conferences and events to promote and facilitate interfaith dialogue.
IARF-US communicates regularly with its current and potential members, and actively participates in events led by its allies. We also fundraise, advocate, and respond to instances of religious persecution through both public statements and public witness.
Our Mission
The U.S. Chapter of the International Association for Religious Freedom (IARF) brings more than a century of experience working for interfaith justice towards a sustainable and peaceful world. By working collaboratively with diverse faith groups and individuals of conscience in the U.S., we promote and nurture inter-religious communication and understanding.
We build relationships across the globe by working in collaboration with our parent organization, IARF-International.
U.S. Chapter Board
George Garland, President
John Gubbings, Treasurer
Roy Kaplan
Stephen Schwichow
Wynante Sewell
Kunihiko Terasawa
U.S. Chapter Advisors
Betsy Darr
Doris Hunter
Abhi Janamanchi
Kathy Matsui
Peter Richardson
From the President
Dear Members and Friends,
A shift in the position of the United States on international religious freedom was addressed in a recent Christianity Today article, “Does Trump2.0 Care About Religious Freedom Abroad?” Their appraisal was that international action on religious freedom is much less while domestic concerns are rising.
The US Conference on Religious Freedom has had a close working relationship with the US Department of State’s Office of International Religious Freedom. That office has published an annual International Religious Freedom Report, and designated Countries of Particular Concern (CPCs), since it was established.
Yet in Trump’s second term, the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act requirement for Department of State’s annual reports has not been fulfilled. The US Department of State has also failed to publish a full list of Countries of Concern, the most serious violators of religious freedom.
The US Agency for International Development and the US Institute for Peace were eliminated by Trump. We lost their experts on religion and religious freedom.
The US government, specifically Trump, has refused to resettle any religious refugees in 2026.
The US government is showing overt privilege for a narrow interpretation of one religion, Christianity, in clear violation of the Constitution. Department of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has invited avowed Christian Nationalist Doug Wilson to preach at the Pentagon. He is establishing an Office of Religious Affairs, “to assess spiritual fitness, spiritual readiness, and spiritual resilience of soldiers,” again in clear violation of the Constitution.
During the Trump administration, the Department of State’s Office of International Religious Freedom has been without an official Ambassador for International Religious Freedom. Recently, Trump appointed Jane Graham Lynch, granddaughter of Evangelical Billy Graham. We shall monitor her ambassadorial activities, as she monitors the status of religious freedom around the world.
—George Garland
Reflections
When religion becomes a reason for the justification of aggression, the horror of hostilities follow—thousands killed by bombs, guns, missiles, and drones; millions driven from their homes and lacking food, water, sanitation, and health care; hospitals, schools, and churches destroyed. Too often states in these dire conditions are the result of attacks on religious freedom.
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals call for strong institutions to promote peace and justice. When a nation-state fails to protect its citizens, the United Nations should be strongly supported in having the means to step in and protect those in dire need. —George Garland
