ADF to DC mayor: Lift mask mandate for religious schools
Mayor Bowser lifts mask mandates across the district, but leaves them in place for children, teachers at religious schools
WASHINGTON – Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing several parents of children attending Catholic schools in Washington, D.C., sent a letter Monday to the director of the DC Department of Health requesting Mayor Muriel Bowser and her department of health lift the mayor’s mask mandate for children, staff, and teachers at religious schools.
“Wearing masks during school substantially burdens the exercise of religious education, and there is no justifiable reason for Mayor Bowser to continue mandating masks for religious schools, especially when she recently lifted mask mandates across most other venues throughout the district,” said ADF Senior Counsel Matt Bowman. “Religious freedom laws require the District to lift this mandate on the children, teachers, and staff at religious schools, and we request a swift resolution in this matter to avoid possible legal action.”
The letter explains how the mayor’s order, which was issued on Feb. 14, “will lift the District-wide mask mandate for bars, restaurants, gyms, entertainment and sports venues, shops, and other businesses starting [Tuesday]. Yet the Order conspicuously—and quite unjustly—leaves children in private schools masked, with no end in sight. This makes no sense, especially in light of the fact that nearby jurisdictions in Virginia and Maryland do not impose mask mandates on private school children. And just last night, Congress—located at the heart of the District—lifted its own mask mandate for its Members and Staff.”
ADF attorneys representing several parents in the Washington, D.C., area are working in partnership with ADWParents.org, an organization of parents of children who attend Archdiocese of Washington schools.
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
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ABOUT Matt Bowman
Matt Bowman serves as senior counsel and director of regulatory practice for Alliance Defending Freedom, where he leads the team focusing on the impact of administrative law on religious freedom, the sanctity of life, and family. From 2017 to 2020, Bowman was a senior executive service appointee in the Trump administration, serving the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as Deputy General Counsel, and then in the Office for Civil Rights. Prior to joining HHS, Bowman was an accomplished litigator at ADF for over ten years. Before joining ADF in 2006, Bowman served as a law clerk for Judges Samuel A. Alito, Jr., and Michael A. Chagares, at the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and for Judge John M. Roll at the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. Bowman earned his J.D. summa cum laude and was first in his class at Ave Maria School of Law in 2003. He is a member of the bar of the District of Columbia and Michigan and is admitted to practice at the U.S. Supreme Court and multiple federal appellate and district courts.