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29 S. LaSalle | Suite 440 | Chicago, IL 60603 | www.thomasmoresociety.org | P: 312.782.1680 | F: 312.782.1887
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” – Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King
June 26, 2012
By: Email to
info@lcfair.com
Fax to 847-680-7260
Lake County Fair Association1060 East Peterson RoadGrayslake, IL 60030
Re: Peter’s Net Exhibitor Booth Denial
Dear Lake County Fair Association and Board Members:We represent Peter’s Net, an Illinois not-for-profit, educational, and evangelical organization.Peter’s Net recently applied for a booth at the Lake County Fair, as it has in years past, but was unjustlyand illegally denied this year, as described below.The mission of Peter’s Net is to provide information to those interested in learning about theCatholic faith, and to invite them to participate in the Catholic Church. As part of its mission, Peter’sNet staffs booths at various county fairs to offer information about neighboring Catholic parishes andthe Catholic Church worldwide, including its teachings and practices. The organization’s bannerproclaims: “Peter’s Net, Welcome to the Catholic Church.” Examples of Catholic information availableto interested fairgoers include: a register of all participating Catholic parishes in the county withrepresentative bulletins from each; displays depicting Catholic sacraments, the Ten Commandments, andthe Stations of the Cross; a papal flag; a fetal model presentation visually supporting the CatholicChurch’s pro-life message; crucifixes, rosaries, and holy cards; religiously-themed games and prizes forchildren; free literature and other free hand-outs; and advertising regarding local catholic radio stations.Each element of the Peter’s Net booth depicts or explains a Catholic practice or teaching. Volunteersengage interested patrons in conversations about the Church and its practices, rituals, and teachings.Patrons who express further interest are invited to join or return to the Catholic Church.Peter’s Net grew out of a booth at the fair in 2009 hosted to publicize the then-new Catholicparish of St. Raphael the Archangel in Antioch. A number of fairgoers asked about other Catholicparishes in the county, and Peter’s Net was organized to better serve county fair patrons by offeringinformation about all participating Catholic parishes in the county, and about the teachings and practicesof the Catholic faith. The Peter’s Net booth has proven popular with fair patrons who offer frequentpraise, and its ministry has been lauded by the Archdiocese of Chicago’s official newspaper, CatholicNew World.In 2012, Peter’s Net again applied for a booth contract for the Lake County Fair to be held in lateJuly. However, in May, your employee, Kathleen Van Dien, notified Ms. Paula Emmerth, Peter’s Net’sfounder, that permission to exhibit would be denied. When asked to explain the denial, Ms. Van Dienresponded that the vetting jury and she personally felt that the organizational message conveyed byPeter’s Net went beyond what was authentically Catholic. She specifically complained about thegroup’s pro-life message, including use of fetal models, and claimed that this message went beyond
Lake County Fair Association-Peter’s NetPage 2 of 3June 26, 2012
29 S. LaSalle | Suite 440 | Chicago, IL 60603 | www.thomasmoresociety.org | P: 312.782.1680 | F: 312.782.1887
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” – Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King
communicating information about the Catholic Church. She also alleged “complaints” about the booth,but could not or would not provide details. Ms. Emmerth asked Ms. Van Dien whether she was“censoring” its message. Ms. Van Dien said that indeed she was. She said she was doing so to “protectthe public from your message” and that the fair was “neither the time nor the place for this topic.” Ms.Van Dien also refused to put the rejection in writing for Peter’s Net.We are writing this letter because Ms. Van Dien’s rejection of the booth application illegallydiscriminates against Peter’s Net on account of its Catholic religious beliefs and practices. Ms. VanDien’s stated disdain for Catholic teaching and the vetting jury’s decision to censor the booth from theFair exhibit a clear unlawful intent to discriminate on the basis of religion. Since the Fair is a “publicaccommodation” under the Illinois Human Rights Act and Title II of the federal Civil Rights Act, theseactions, if persisted in, expose the Fair to religious discrimination liability.The Fair Association’s conduct respecting Peter’s Net is also illegal because it contravenes theconditions for its 501(c)(3) public charity status,
viz
., that it must refrain from discriminating,
inter alia
,on the basis of “religion or political preference.” (See, the Fair’s Vendor Overview, which promises thatit “does not discriminate according to race, sexual orientation, religion or political preference.”) Peter’sNet’s message falls directly within the category of religious expression, and its suppression is asuppression of religious practice and religion. But the Catholic message also has political ramifications,which were, we are sure, not lost on Ms. Van Dien or the vetting committee. Since by its own non-discrimination policy the Fair may not prefer one political message to another, so too it may not silenceone religious message over another. We are certain the Fair never considered rejecting applications bythe Republican or Democratic party booths. Its silencing of Peter’s Net is likewise unjustifiable andillegal.We also note that the Fair’s behavior contravenes its policy to accept “Information Booths,”defined as “not-for-profit organizations such as libraries, service groups, churches, etc.” As a servicegroup supporting Catholic parishes and the Catholic faith, Peter’s Net squarely falls into this approvedcategory, and so its application should have been approved. The Fair’s reservation of rights under the“Vetting” section of its Vendor Overview does not allow it to discriminate against an otherwiseacceptable booth’s
religious
message and its manner of expression. Nor may it discriminate againstreligious speech in reliance on a stray negative comment or complaint concerning its content or meansof expression. Nondiscrimination with respect to religious and political speech in a publicaccommodation requires some measure of deafness to complaints of disgruntled listeners. Otherwise,mere griping would sanction religious discrimination. In the same way the Fair does not censoropposing political booths, it must not allow the religious messages it favors and censor the religiousmessages it opposes.The Fair Association’s denial of a permit to Peter’s Net to exhibit at this year’s Lake County Fairis illegal and indefensible. Please immediately grant permission to Peter’s Net to have its booth again inthis year’s fair, just as it has in prior years’ fairs. Should the Lake County Fair Association refuse andpersist in its illegal discrimination against Peter’s Net, we are prepared to pursue the matter with theIllinois Human Rights Commission, in court, and before other appropriate forums, and even beyond thescheduled Fair dates, to protect our client’s rights both for this year and in the future.
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Letter to Lake County, IL Fair Association Regarding Religious Discrimination
Thomas More Society represents Peter’s Net, an Illinois not-for-profit, educational, and evangelical organization.
Peter’s Net recently applied for a booth at the Lake County Fair, as it has in years past, but was unjustly
and illegally denied this year, as described in this letter.
Peter’s Net recently applied for a booth at the Lake County Fair, as it has in years past, but was unjustly
and illegally denied this year, as described in this letter.
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