Courts

Inside a Federal Judge’s Cozy Ties to an Anti-Gay Marriage Think Tank

Fifth Circuit Judge Edith Brown Clement takes annual trips funded by a think tank that advocates for overturning gay marriage. She also ruled on a panel last year that a Christian business was allowed to discriminate against gay people.

Plaintiffs and supporters pose for pictures outside of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Plaintiffs and supporters pose outside of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, Jan. 9, 2015, in New Orleans. Stacy Revere/AP

By Claire Heddles

June 17, 2024 06:00 AM

For the past three years, 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Senior Judge Edith Brown Clement has taken an annual trip to Princeton University funded by a think tank called The Witherspoon Institute.

Last year’s trip was a milestone: The Witherspoon Institute celebrated its 20th anniversary with a dinner and keynote focused on how “cancel culture” is real. Clement spent two days in Princeton during which the institute paid for and provided transportation, lodging and meals.

The institute bills itself as a space for philosophy and debate. This year, its curriculum for students included a seminar on whether men and women can be just friends, a selected reading of Summa Theologica and a discussion on the “foundations of Judeo-Christian moral tradition.”