February 22, 2012
Rowan County commissioners opened their meeting Monday night with a prayer invoking Jesus, defying a request from the American Civil Liberties Union to stop the practice.
On Tuesday, Katy Parker, legal director of the N.C. chapter of the ACLU, told the Observer her group has asked Rowan County officials to give an official response by March 5.
"We're hoping cooler heads prevail," she said. "We hope the commissioners will talk to their county attorney, see how clear the law is and then agree to uphold the law. ... What Rowan County is doing is clearly in violation of the law."
The ACLU in North Carolina has contacted dozens of government bodies in the state in recent weeks, noting that the U.S. Supreme Court recently upheld a lower court decision that forbids Forsyth County commissioners from starting their meetings with a prayer that is specific to one religion.
Rowan commissioners prayed a Christian prayer that mentioned the "Father" and was made "in Jesus' name."
Parker said it appears that only the Rowan County Commission and the General Assembly are opening meetings with sectarian prayers. Both received letters from the ACLU in North Carolina, she said.
"We got more complaints (from religious minorities) from Rowan County than anyplace else," she said.
The ACLU received five complaints about the commissioners' prayer before the letter was sent, and more since then.
She said her group has received no complaints from Mecklenburg County.
Those in Rowan County who support the commissioners' decision to keep praying were out in force Monday night. Hundreds of people attended the meeting, and others spilled out onto the sidewalk in front of the Rowan County Government Building.
During the "public comment" portion of Monday night's meeting, more than 20 Rowan County residents discussed the issue. All but one of them asked commissioners to continue to start meetings with prayer.
At least one commissioner told reporters Monday that he expects the ACLU-Rowan County dispute to end in court.
Parker of the ACLU in North Carolina, which took Forsyth County to court, wouldn't rule out litigation in the case of Rowan County.
"We haven't decided. But even if we don't (file suit), other groups might," she said. "And litigation can be very expensive for the county and would be (paid for) by taxpayers."
Rowan County, North Carolina Commissioners Ignore ACLU, Start With Prayer
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