McMillen v. Anderson was a United States Supreme Court case that dealt with the issue of religious freedom. The case involved a dispute between a school board and a student over the student's right to attend a religious school. The student, McMillen, was a member of the Church of the Brethren and wanted to attend a school run by the church. The school board denied McMillen's request, citing a state law that prohibited students from attending religious schools. McMillen argued that the state law violated his right to religious freedom under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. The Supreme Court agreed with McMillen, ruling that the state law was unconstitutional. The Court held that the state law violated the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment, which guarantees the right to practice one's religion without interference from the government. The Court's ruling in McMillen v. Anderson was an important victory for religious freedom. It established that the government cannot interfere with an individual's right to practice their religion, even if it means attending a religious school. The ruling also established that the government cannot pass laws that are specifically designed to target religious practices.

In the case of McMillen v. Anderson, the Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a state statute that prohibited interracial marriages violated the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause. The majority opinion held that it did not violate this clause and thus upheld the law in question. However, Justice Field dissented from this decision on two grounds: firstly, he argued that laws which discriminate against individuals based on race are inherently unequal; secondly, he contended that such laws were contrary to public policy as they infringed upon an individual's right to marry someone of their own choosing without interference from government authorities. He concluded by stating "that no State has any power to diminish or destroy these inherent and inalienable rights". Thus, Justice Field believed that states should not be allowed to pass legislation which discriminates against people based solely on their race when it comes to marriage rights.