Virginia county sued for denying mosque permit
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil rights lawsuit against Culpeper County, Va. in mid-December, accusing the county of discriminating against Muslims for denying a permit for a Muslim group that wanted to build a mosque.
In April, a pump and haul permit to haul wastewater from the Islamic Center of Culpeper was brought before the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors and then denied, Virginia Tech public radio station WVTF reports. The lawsuit, filed in Virginia's Western District, claims that the county chairwoman and county administrator had argued that the permit was being too scrutinized for the wrong reasons, the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star reports.
The lawsuit also claims that the supervisors who voted to deny the permit had been influenced by public protests against the permit's approval, and that several protesters present for the vote cheered when the permit was voted to be denied, according to the Free Lance-Star.
“Religious liberty is a fundamental right in our country and this case seeks to uphold that right,” U.S. Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. said in a news release. “We will continue to work with the experienced lawyers with the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice to protect the residents of the Western District of Virginia from unlawful discrimination.”
The Islamic Center of Culpeper has never had an official house of worship, according to Buzzfeed News.
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil rights lawsuit against Culpeper County, Va. in mid-December, accusing the county of discriminating against Muslims for denying a permit for a Muslim group that wanted to build a mosque.
In April, a pump and haul permit to haul wastewater from the Islamic Center of Culpeper was brought before the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors and then denied, Virginia Tech public radio station WVTF reports. The lawsuit, filed in Virginia's Western District, claims that the county chairwoman and county administrator had argued that the permit was being too scrutinized for the wrong reasons, the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star reports.
The lawsuit also claims that the supervisors who voted to deny the permit had been influenced by public protests against the permit's approval, and that several protesters present for the vote cheered when the permit was voted to be denied, according to the Free Lance-Star.
“Religious liberty is a fundamental right in our country and this case seeks to uphold that right,” U.S. Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. said in a news release. “We will continue to work with the experienced lawyers with the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice to protect the residents of the Western District of Virginia from unlawful discrimination.”
The Islamic Center of Culpeper has never had an official house of worship, according to Buzzfeed News.