The U.S. Department of Justice published a passionate defense of Americans’ right to worship during the coronavirus pandemic in a letter to county officials in Maryland on June 10.
A letter from Eric Dreiband, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s civil rights division, informed Montgomery County officials that if they were going to support “hundreds of people packed into a library” for a protest, they should be equally supportive of people gathering to worship during the pandemic.
Asked about the discrepancy, a Justice Department spokesperson acknowledged to HuffPost that local Fox News affiliate WTTG had gotten the facts wrong in its story about the protest.
In the Justice Department’s letter, Dreiband applauded the county’s efforts to support peaceful protest.
During the pandemic, the Justice Department has placed a priority on protecting the ability of churches to stay open in defiance of state and local stay-at-home orders.
