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Amanda Tyler
NationalityAmerican
Alma materWalsh School of Foreign Service
University of Texas School of Law
Occupation(s)Lawyer and executive

Amanda R. Tyler[1] is an American lawyer and executive. She is the executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty (BJC) in Washington, D.C., a nonprofit whose focus is defending religious freedom for all people.[2] In addition, she serves as the co-host of the BJC's "Respecting Religion" podcast series, alongside BJC General Counsel Holly Hollman.[3] Tyler is the sixth executive director of the organization since its founding in 1936 and the first woman to hold the post.

Under her leadership, BJC has opposed the Muslim travel ban[4] and Christian nationalism,[5] and supported the protections of the Johnson Amendment.[6]

Early life and education

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Tyler grew up in Austin, Texas. She graduated magna cum laude from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in 2000 with a bachelor's degree in foreign service. She earned her J.D. with honors in 2004 from the University of Texas School of Law.[7]

Career

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While in college, Tyler worked as an intern at BJC and then joined the staff as the assistant to the general counsel. During that time, she assisted with the coordination of a coalition in support of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), which was signed into law in 2000 by President Bill Clinton.[8]

Following her graduation, Tyler worked as an associate at Baron & Budd in Dallas, and then Lynn Tillotson Pinker & Cox (now Lynn Pinker Cox & Hurst). She completed a one-year clerkship for The Honorable Barbara M.G. Lynn of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

In 2009, Tyler joined the staff of U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett in Austin as district director and moved to Washington, D.C. in 2012 to serve as his counsel for the Ways and Means Committee. She held this position until January 2017 when she took up the position of executive director of BJC.

Writings

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Tyler is the author of How to End Christian Nationalism, released by Broadleaf Books on October 22, 2024.[9]

Congressional and media appearances

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Tyler has testified before Congress numerous times. On October 25, 2023, Tyler testified before the U.S. House Oversight Committee’s Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs, during their hearing titled “Faith Under Fire: An Examination of Global Religious Persecution.”[10][11] On December 13, 2022, she testified before the House Oversight Committee’s Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, during their hearing on "Confronting White Supremacy (Part 7): The Evolution of Anti-Democratic Extremist Groups and the Ongoing Threat to Democracy."[12][13] On October 2, 2018, Tyler testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the current challenges to religious freedom.[14]

Tyler submitted written testimony to Congress on May 4, 2017, objecting to a proposed repeal of the Johnson Amendment - the law that protects houses of worship and other religious nonprofit organizations from the political pressures that come with endorsing and opposing candidates.[15]

Op-eds by Tyler have been published in The Washington Post, The Hill, and Religious News Service.[citation needed]

Awards and recognition

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Tyler was named one of the top 50 nonprofit leaders in the country in 2018 by The NonProfit Times.[16]

BJC received the Judge George Alexander Teitz Award from the Touro Synagogue in 2018 for best exemplifying the commitment to the ideals of religious and ethnic tolerance and freedom, expressed in President George Washington's 1790 Letter “to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, Rhode Island.”[17]

In 2019, Tyler was named the young alumna of the year by the University of Texas School of Law.[18]

EthicsDaily.com named Tyler "Baptist of the Year" in 2019 for her leadership of the Christians Against Christian Nationalism campaign.[19]

Personal life

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Tyler is married to Robert Behrendt, an attorney. They have one son.[20] Tyler and her family live in Texas.[21]

References

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  1. ^ "Amanda Tyler to head Baptist religious liberty organization". The Christian Century. 16 October 2016.
  2. ^ "About BJC". BJConline.com. BJC. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  3. ^ "Respecting Religion: A BJC Podcast series". BJC. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
  4. ^ Tyler, Amanda (24 September 2019). "TRUMP IS DISMANTLING TRUE RELIGIOUS FREEDOM". Sojo.net. Sojourners. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  5. ^ Rosenberg, Paul (10 August 2019). "A grassroots Christians movement joins the fight against Christian Nationalism". Salon. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  6. ^ Landler, Mark; Goodstein, Laurie (2 February 2017). "Trump Vows to 'Destroy' Law Banning Political Endorsements by Churches". New York Times. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  7. ^ Crowe, Cherilyn (26 September 2016). "Texan Amanda Tyler named BJC executive director-elect". Baptiststandard.com. Baptist Standard. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
  8. ^ Brown, Matthew (14 January 2017). "Leadership changes at Baptist Joint Committee, but commitment to protect religious liberty remains". deseret.com. Deseret News. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
  9. ^ "How to End Christian Nationalism". Broadleaf Books. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
  10. ^ GOP Oversight (2023-10-25). Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs Hearing. Retrieved 2024-09-24 – via YouTube.
  11. ^ https://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Amanda-Tyler-Faith-Under-Fire.pdf
  12. ^ Oversight Committee Democrats (2022-12-13). Amanda Tyler's Testimony: Confronting White Supremacy Part VII. Retrieved 2024-09-24 – via YouTube.
  13. ^ https://bjconline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/BJC-testimony-for-House-Oversight-Committee-hearing-on-white-supremacy.pdf
  14. ^ "Testimony of Amanda Tyler, on behalf of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty" (PDF). Committee on the Judiciary. U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  15. ^ Tyler, Amanda. "Statement by Amanda Tyler" (PDF). BJConline.org. BJC. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
  16. ^ "The Top 50 of 2018" (PDF). The NonProfitTimes. Nonprofit Times Publishing Group Inc. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  17. ^ "The Judge George Alexander Teitz Award". Touro Synagogue Foundation. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  18. ^ "2019 Alumni Awards: Outstanding Young Alumna, Amanda Tyler '04". University of Texas Law. 22 October 2019. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  19. ^ Randall, Mitch (27 December 2019). "Baptists of the Year 2019: Amanda Tyler and Jorge Zapata". EthicsDaily.com. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  20. ^ Jameson, Norman (11 October 2017). "A year after assuming leadership, Amanda Tyler reflects on religious liberty group that 'punches above its weight'". BaptistNews.com. Baptist News Global. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
  21. ^ "Amanda Tyler". BJC. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
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