U.S. Department Of Justice Says Houses Of Worship Have No Constitutional Right
To Ignore Public Health Orders.
'An official with the U.S. Department of Justice hinted last week that Attorney General William Barr would soon issue a statement about the impact of stay-at-home orders on houses of worship.
The statement was issued yesterday. In it, Barr more or less agrees with Americans United’s view: Government officials have the right to ban large gatherings as long as they treat religious and secular events the same. It also says, “[W]e believe that during this period there is a sufficient basis for the social distancing rules that have been put in place. …”
Even so, Barr’s spin on recent events is not quite accurate.
“But even in times of emergency, when reasonable and temporary restrictions are placed on rights, the First Amendment and federal statutory law prohibit discrimination against religious institutions and religious believers,” Barr wrote. “Thus, government may not impose special restrictions on religious activity that do not also apply to similar nonreligious activity. For example, if a government allows movie theaters, restaurants, concert halls, and other comparable places of assembly to remain open and unrestricted, it may not order houses of worship to close, limit their congregation size, or otherwise impede religious gatherings. Religious institutions must not be singled out for special burdens.”
While that statement is true, it ignores the reality on the ground. Americans United has been monitoring the situation nationwide, and we’re unaware of any state that has a policy that allows people to gather for secular events such as concerts, sporting matches and movies while denying that right to houses of worship. In fact, just the opposite is true: In some states, governors have banned all large gatherings but granted exemptions to houses of worship – policies that violate the Constitution and jeopardize public health.'>>>
https://www.au.org/blogs/justice-department-virus?
