Karen Lugo has an article in American Greatness on how the Justice Department has been putting pressure on communities not to fight the construction of new mosques in their neighborhoods no matter what the problems resulting in terms of traffic and late night noise.
https://amgreatness.com/2017/06/16/department-justice-privileging-mosques/
As the article states, hopefully, under Trump, this policy will change.
On the other hand, I know of a congregational church that was opposed by local city government because they wanted a more remunerative use for the land the church had purchased. The church won without the aid of the Justice Department... they cited the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, a follow-up to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which was a joint project of Senator Edward Kennedy and Senator Orrin Hatch. The DOJ may be over-doing it in terms of focusing on Muslims, but the legal principle is still valid. Yes, cities can make reasonable requirements in terms of thoroughfares and parking, but they can't say "no mosque."
ReplyDeleteThe key is to apply zoning regulations equally. A mosque where people are coming and going at all hours to attend prayers with resultant parking and noise problems ids an issue in a residential neighborhood.The rules must also be applied evenly for mosques, churches and synagogues. There have been documented cases where mosques have been given preferential treatment over churches in these issues.
ReplyDeleteSince the days when most people attended a neighborhood church they could walk to, parking and traffic have been an issue, and a legitimate one. There is of course a sincerity gap, since people who just don't like the idea of a mosque being built hide behind zoning regulations, and people who want to create a massive, loud nuisance hide behind religious liberty. It the "good old days" Chicago had one of the strictest health inspection codes in the nation... but it was only applied when the ward boss wanted to retaliate against a business that wouldn't post the right signs in the windows.
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