A Whites-only religious group obtained permission from a small Minnesota town city council to use a vacant church.
Murdock, a town with a population of less than 300, passed a conditional permit Wednesday to allow the Asatru Folk Assembly to use a church building they purchased.
The Asatru Folk Assembly is an Asatru organization formed in 1995 by Stephen McNallen. It refers to itself as part of the “great Aryan religiosity.” Their website defines Asatru as “the religion by which the Ethnic European Folk have traditionally related to the Divine and to the world around them.”
City leaders cite the First Amendment rights as a reason behind the passage of the permit.
“We as the leaders of the City of Murdock want it to be known that the City of Murdock condemns racism in all of its forms: Conscious, Unconscious, any place, any time, now and in the future,” town Mayor Craig Kavanagh said. “We are committed to building a community that promotes equal justice and opportunity to every single person regardless of their race.”
In a statement to CNN, Kavanagh said, “The Conditional Use Permit for the AFA is very controversial if you want to make it about religious beliefs, but what is failing to get mentioned, is this vote was not about beliefs.”
He said the vote was about a zoning permit for an abandoned church intended to be used precisely for what it was built for. In his statement to the outlet, he said the subject was the main topic at city council meetings and in the community of the last couple of months. The mayor sought counsel from the city attorney, who advised to pass the permit or the circumstances could present a “substantial burden.”
“The vote last night had nothing to do with beliefs or race; it was strictly a zoning issue the council felt like it needed to legally abide by, or it would have caused a substantial burden to the town,” the mayor said.
The group posted a statement to Facebook and thanked the City Council of Murdock for passing the conditional use permit.
“We know there was a lot of pressure on you to deny us our permit and right to worship. We appreciate your fairness and this opportunity,” the post read.
