Wingman Day: A Violation of the Separation of Church And State

The separation of church and state is one of the founding principles of the United States. Air Command and Staff College breached the church-state divide during the Wingman Day briefing and the briefing was unconstitutional. The research for this paper focused on two main areas: policy guidance and case law. Department of Defense (DoD) and Air Force policy give extensive guidance on religious freedom to Air Force personnel and leaders. Case law sets the legal precedence for the separation of church and state. By applying DoD and Air Force policy along with the case law one can extrapolate why the Wingman Day briefing violated the church-state divide. The author provides his recommendation on how the Air Force can modify the Wingman Day briefing to comply with the First Amendment to the Constitution.