Raleigh, NC – On Thursday, May 14, 2020. at 11 am, on behalf of hundreds of churches in North Carolina, the Return America group will call a news conference announcing a lawsuit to be filled against North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper. The location will be in front of the North Carolina Legislative Building at 16 West Jones Street in Raleigh.
The group’s press release states:
The purpose of this lawsuit is to convince the governor that churches need the freedom to exercise the rights already given unto them in the First Amendment of our United States Constitution and our North Carolina State Constitution. Through his executive orders, he has curtailed church assembling and limited attendance to a maximum of no more than ten people per service. At the same time, he has allowed ABC stores, abortion centers, hardware stores, Wal-Mart stores, vapor shops, NASCAR, and others to operate at much larger capacities. This is discrimination against the church!
On previous occasions, through documentation we have asked the governor to allow the churches to operate with at least the same amount of freedom given to businesses. The previous documentation contained around 200 names of pastors and their churches. The governor never responded to our request. At the same time, he was working with NASCAR to find a way for them to implement their upcoming race in Charlotte.
We are not asking for special favors, but a minimum of free exercise of our religious liberties. In our churches we will provide sanitary conditions even beyond the recommendations of the CDC.
Attorney Dr. David Gibbs, Jr., will be at the news conference to explain the way forward in the lawsuit.
We need pastors from across the state to be present and encourage their congregations to drive in.
Never since we officially became a nation in 1776 have we experienced an almost total shutdown of our churches. This must never happen again!
I look forward to seeing you on Thursday at 11:00 AM in front of our North Carolina Legislative Building in Raleigh as we stand up for our God-given, inalienable rights set forth in our Constitutions.
Dr. Ron Baity
President
Return America