Massachusetts officers face warmth for push to ban spiritual teams from renting college house

Native metropolis officers are beneath fireplace as they push to ban church buildings and non secular teams from renting public college house.

Whereas the Salem College Committee strikes ahead with the proposal, a free speech and non secular liberty group is threatening that it’s going to sue The Witch Metropolis for “anti-Christian witch hunts.”

The Massachusetts Liberty Authorized Heart has despatched a authorized demand letter to the Salem board, warning them {that a} lawsuit is coming in the event that they move the spiritual group ban.

“I write on behalf of my client, House of Promise Church, to demand that you immediately cease any effort to discriminate against it or any other religious organization based on their religious beliefs and viewpoints,” wrote Sam Whiting, counsel of the Massachusetts Liberty Authorized Heart.

“It is our understanding that you are in the process of approving a policy that would ban religious organizations, and only religious organizations, from renting or leasing space in Salem Public Schools,” Whiting added. “This would constitute a clear First Amendment violation. Should you pass and implement this policy, we will take immediate legal action to preserve my client’s rights.”

Home of Promise Church is a non-denominational Christian church that has reserved house within the auditorium of Collins Center College for Sunday worship companies for a lot of years.

In the meantime, many different organizations additionally lease house from Salem Public Faculties for his or her conferences and actions, such because the Boys and Ladies Membership, a daycare, and afterschool applications.

Final month, the Salem College Committee proposed a change to the coverage for the “Lease and Rental of School Facilities.” The modification would ban spiritual organizations from leasing or renting college house.

“Which is not uncommon in school districts throughout Massachusetts,” College Committee member Beth Anne Cornell mentioned throughout a latest assembly. “And that is to address concerns that we may have a religious organization whose values maybe don’t align with the district’s (values).”

She famous the district’s budgetary considerations over the subsequent few years.

“Space is going to be important to us in the coming years,” Cornell mentioned, including, “We really need to start thinking about the way that we use space throughout the district.”

The Massachusetts Liberty Authorized Heart is arguing that the spiritual ban can be unconstitutional.

The coverage would “unquestionably violate” the First Modification rights of Home of Promise Church and all different spiritual teams that need to lease house at Salem Public Faculties, Whiting wrote.

“Here, Salem clearly intends to discriminate against House of Promise Church based on the church’s religious viewpoints,” Whiting added. “Excluding a gaggle based mostly on its spiritual nature is itself viewpoint discrimination.

“But Salem has gone even further than this, implementing a policy that bans religious groups not just because they are religious but because, in the School Committee’s own words, they may hold ‘values that do not align to the district’s values,’ ” he wrote. “It should go without saying that banning some speakers because they may espouse views and values that the government does not like is textbook viewpoint discrimination.”