LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR OF MEDITATION CENTER OF ALABAMA
We are kindly asking for your help in our Buddhist discrimination case involving the Meditation Center of Alabama. We greatly appreciate your time to read this letter in hopes that justice and equality may be brought to our Meditation Center in Southern Alabama.
The Meditation Center of Alabama (MCA) is a non-profit Buddhist organization incorporated in 2007 whose goal it is to teach Buddhist meditation and wisdom to people from all walks of life. It is our belief that sustainable world peace can be achieved when each person is able to find their own individual peace and happiness. We have spread the knowledge of meditation to over 2000 people in the community for over 12 years and hold classes 3 times a week (10-15 students per class) during which we video call Middle Way Meditation Instructors (aka Dhammakaya Buddhist Meditation Method) from all around the world. We are unable to house a teaching monk or instructor in our current facility due to the constraints of a commercial setting. We ask only for donations and open our doors to everyone to learn our meditation method. Buddhist monks and teachers come to Mobile about twice a year to give public lectures and host meditation retreats.
My family and I purchased a house in Mobile, Alabama in July 2007 with the intent to start our Meditation Center. A Buddhist monk began living in this house and we began having meditation classes for friends and family. (exhibit 1 & 2)
We received 4 warnings and violations from Aug-Nov 2007 that we are not allowed to meditate or conduct any religious activities in our house prior to getting planning approval.
We applied for Planning Approval on September 14, 2007. Our engineer worked with the city to comply with all rules and regulations. A public hearing was held on Nov 2007 and we were recommended for denial. Thirty neighbors along with a City Councilman on our district came to oppose our project citing mostly religious reasons. One letter from the neighbors specifically stated “I was in Thailand and it was a quaint image and I do not want to see that in my front yard." I thus withdrew my application and my dream was ultimately crushed at the time. The monk moved out of our house and we stopped holding classes for 2 years. (exhibit 3)
In 2009 my dream was revived when a Dhammakaya Buddhist Monk came to Mobile to give a class and I was encouraged to open the center in my own shopping space. (exhibit 4)
Our center is located on one of the busiest streets in Mobile with 6 lanes of traffic and commercial businesses on all sides (exhibit 5 & 6). Our location is not ideal for tranquil meditation with constant noise from ambulances, honking cars, passersby talking, and noise from the other commercial businesses in our building. We seek to relocate into a tranquil and peaceful place in nature where we can have adequate accommodations for our teachers and have all the religious facilities necessary to hold meditation retreats for the community.
In August 2015 we found a scenic 6.7-acre property on the river surrounded by dense forest and vegetation that seemed to be a perfect location for our center (exhibit 7 & 8). We attended a pre-planning development meeting with the City of Mobile Department heads (8 to 10 staffs) prior to purchasing the property to ensure there would be no problems with our proposal. We were told that there were no foreseeable problems with our plan to build a meditation center at this location. There were no negative comments from the City and the city official handed us an application to apply for planning approval.
The first planning commission hearing was in October 2015(exhibit 9). Neighbors came to oppose my project similar to my first project almost a decade earlier. The meeting was held over and the City Lawyer tasked us to provide documentation that we were a religious organization. Prior to this meeting we had always been treated as Buddhist, back in 2007 when neighbors opposed us, and by the pre-planning development meeting prior to the purchase of our house. This was a shock to be asked to prove that we are Buddhist, something that no other church or religious organization in the history of planning applications in Mobile has ever been asked to do. We complied and sent in our articles of incorporation that clearly stated our purpose to “….teach meditation and to expand the knowledge of Buddhism” ( exhibit 10 & 11 & 12) along with IRS documentation compiled to start our non-profit organization that includes all the major tenants of Buddhism on which our organization is founded. We received an 11-page document (exhibit 13) of corrections to be made to our proposal to meet all city requirements. Our engineer revised our plans to meet every requirement asked and we downsized our project from 3 buildings to 2 and willing to comply to any requirements (exhibit 14).
We held 2 meetings for the neighbors to get know us and become familiar with our project. One was held at the Meditation Center where 8 neighbors came, and a 2nd meeting was organized by our City Councilman where about 40 neighbors came to oppose our project. The emotional state of the meeting was so highly charged that we were unable to finish our presentation Unable to insert fact into anger, ultimately the City Councilman had to stop the meeting early.
The second public hearing was on December 3, 2015. Mobile Planning Commission outright denied our application despite us meeting every requirement they asked of us. The City could not point to any case where a church or business has been denied out right planning approval. They always seemed to work things out. The city refused to acknowledge that we are a religious organization after we sent in all appropriate documentation.
In March of 2016 I opened my home to host 2 meditation retreats at the proposed site for the new meditation center (exhibit 15 & 16). In May 2016 the City of Mobile filed an injunction and lawsuit against each member of the Nimityongskul family and MCA for conducting “illegal meditation retreat[s]” at our home. This was again an unprecedented move to file an injunction without any warning, something the City has never done before. (exhibit 17). MCA negotiated with the City of Mobile and agreed not to hold any meditation retreats without first applying for a permit (exhibit 18 & video exhibit 19).
MCA filed an appeal against the denial of our application to the Mobile City Council. The public hearing was held on January 19, 2016. Neighbors again came to oppose our project voicing noise, traffic and environmental concerns with a special emphasis on the fact that we are a commercial and not a religious organization. The City decided not to treat us as a religious organization and refused to recognize that we are Buddhist as we clearly state that we do not seek to convert anyone and that our practices are open to people from all religions and walks of life.
MCA filed a lawsuit against the City of Mobile in the federal court and a bench trial took place from March 12 to 19. The judge ruled in favor of the City. After our Buddhist teaching monk testified on our behalf and other Buddhist teachers testified regarding the Buddhist nature of our organization, and same as the city the judge said we were not a religious organization because we open our doors to people of all religions, races and nationalities.
Throughout this whole process the City of Mobile not holding up to their own rules and procedure and we were held to a different standard than other religions seeking to build places of worship in our city. We feel very strongly that we were discriminated against and treated unfairly by the City of Mobile for the past decade. We were held to double standards, the City asked us to provide proof we are a religious organization, and then they refused to believe that we were Buddhist after we provided the proof. Even after going to the federal court where our Buddhist teaching monk and Buddhist teacher testified to the Buddhist nature of our religious organization we were still not recognized as a religious organization!
Our organization is asking for your help and prayer on our religious discrimination case. We are kindly asking for your help in any possible way to help shed the light on what is occurring in Southern Alabama. If there is any way you might be able to help share our story on social media, write a support letter, or any other means you can think of we would greatly appreciate it. (exhibit 20)
We deeply thank you for your time to read this email and for your kindness to promote peace and equality in our society. Thank you for any help you may be able to give our organization during this time.
We greatly appreciate all your prayers, support and loving kindness.
May you and your family be blessed with good health, happiness and joy in every moment of your life. May freedom be a reality for us all.
The Meditation Center of Alabama (MCA) is a non-profit Buddhist organization incorporated in 2007 whose goal it is to teach Buddhist meditation and wisdom to people from all walks of life. It is our belief that sustainable world peace can be achieved when each person is able to find their own individual peace and happiness. We have spread the knowledge of meditation to over 2000 people in the community for over 12 years and hold classes 3 times a week (10-15 students per class) during which we video call Middle Way Meditation Instructors (aka Dhammakaya Buddhist Meditation Method) from all around the world. We are unable to house a teaching monk or instructor in our current facility due to the constraints of a commercial setting. We ask only for donations and open our doors to everyone to learn our meditation method. Buddhist monks and teachers come to Mobile about twice a year to give public lectures and host meditation retreats.
My family and I purchased a house in Mobile, Alabama in July 2007 with the intent to start our Meditation Center. A Buddhist monk began living in this house and we began having meditation classes for friends and family. (exhibit 1 & 2)
We received 4 warnings and violations from Aug-Nov 2007 that we are not allowed to meditate or conduct any religious activities in our house prior to getting planning approval.
We applied for Planning Approval on September 14, 2007. Our engineer worked with the city to comply with all rules and regulations. A public hearing was held on Nov 2007 and we were recommended for denial. Thirty neighbors along with a City Councilman on our district came to oppose our project citing mostly religious reasons. One letter from the neighbors specifically stated “I was in Thailand and it was a quaint image and I do not want to see that in my front yard." I thus withdrew my application and my dream was ultimately crushed at the time. The monk moved out of our house and we stopped holding classes for 2 years. (exhibit 3)
In 2009 my dream was revived when a Dhammakaya Buddhist Monk came to Mobile to give a class and I was encouraged to open the center in my own shopping space. (exhibit 4)
Our center is located on one of the busiest streets in Mobile with 6 lanes of traffic and commercial businesses on all sides (exhibit 5 & 6). Our location is not ideal for tranquil meditation with constant noise from ambulances, honking cars, passersby talking, and noise from the other commercial businesses in our building. We seek to relocate into a tranquil and peaceful place in nature where we can have adequate accommodations for our teachers and have all the religious facilities necessary to hold meditation retreats for the community.
In August 2015 we found a scenic 6.7-acre property on the river surrounded by dense forest and vegetation that seemed to be a perfect location for our center (exhibit 7 & 8). We attended a pre-planning development meeting with the City of Mobile Department heads (8 to 10 staffs) prior to purchasing the property to ensure there would be no problems with our proposal. We were told that there were no foreseeable problems with our plan to build a meditation center at this location. There were no negative comments from the City and the city official handed us an application to apply for planning approval.
The first planning commission hearing was in October 2015(exhibit 9). Neighbors came to oppose my project similar to my first project almost a decade earlier. The meeting was held over and the City Lawyer tasked us to provide documentation that we were a religious organization. Prior to this meeting we had always been treated as Buddhist, back in 2007 when neighbors opposed us, and by the pre-planning development meeting prior to the purchase of our house. This was a shock to be asked to prove that we are Buddhist, something that no other church or religious organization in the history of planning applications in Mobile has ever been asked to do. We complied and sent in our articles of incorporation that clearly stated our purpose to “….teach meditation and to expand the knowledge of Buddhism” ( exhibit 10 & 11 & 12) along with IRS documentation compiled to start our non-profit organization that includes all the major tenants of Buddhism on which our organization is founded. We received an 11-page document (exhibit 13) of corrections to be made to our proposal to meet all city requirements. Our engineer revised our plans to meet every requirement asked and we downsized our project from 3 buildings to 2 and willing to comply to any requirements (exhibit 14).
We held 2 meetings for the neighbors to get know us and become familiar with our project. One was held at the Meditation Center where 8 neighbors came, and a 2nd meeting was organized by our City Councilman where about 40 neighbors came to oppose our project. The emotional state of the meeting was so highly charged that we were unable to finish our presentation Unable to insert fact into anger, ultimately the City Councilman had to stop the meeting early.
The second public hearing was on December 3, 2015. Mobile Planning Commission outright denied our application despite us meeting every requirement they asked of us. The City could not point to any case where a church or business has been denied out right planning approval. They always seemed to work things out. The city refused to acknowledge that we are a religious organization after we sent in all appropriate documentation.
In March of 2016 I opened my home to host 2 meditation retreats at the proposed site for the new meditation center (exhibit 15 & 16). In May 2016 the City of Mobile filed an injunction and lawsuit against each member of the Nimityongskul family and MCA for conducting “illegal meditation retreat[s]” at our home. This was again an unprecedented move to file an injunction without any warning, something the City has never done before. (exhibit 17). MCA negotiated with the City of Mobile and agreed not to hold any meditation retreats without first applying for a permit (exhibit 18 & video exhibit 19).
MCA filed an appeal against the denial of our application to the Mobile City Council. The public hearing was held on January 19, 2016. Neighbors again came to oppose our project voicing noise, traffic and environmental concerns with a special emphasis on the fact that we are a commercial and not a religious organization. The City decided not to treat us as a religious organization and refused to recognize that we are Buddhist as we clearly state that we do not seek to convert anyone and that our practices are open to people from all religions and walks of life.
MCA filed a lawsuit against the City of Mobile in the federal court and a bench trial took place from March 12 to 19. The judge ruled in favor of the City. After our Buddhist teaching monk testified on our behalf and other Buddhist teachers testified regarding the Buddhist nature of our organization, and same as the city the judge said we were not a religious organization because we open our doors to people of all religions, races and nationalities.
Throughout this whole process the City of Mobile not holding up to their own rules and procedure and we were held to a different standard than other religions seeking to build places of worship in our city. We feel very strongly that we were discriminated against and treated unfairly by the City of Mobile for the past decade. We were held to double standards, the City asked us to provide proof we are a religious organization, and then they refused to believe that we were Buddhist after we provided the proof. Even after going to the federal court where our Buddhist teaching monk and Buddhist teacher testified to the Buddhist nature of our religious organization we were still not recognized as a religious organization!
Our organization is asking for your help and prayer on our religious discrimination case. We are kindly asking for your help in any possible way to help shed the light on what is occurring in Southern Alabama. If there is any way you might be able to help share our story on social media, write a support letter, or any other means you can think of we would greatly appreciate it. (exhibit 20)
We deeply thank you for your time to read this email and for your kindness to promote peace and equality in our society. Thank you for any help you may be able to give our organization during this time.
We greatly appreciate all your prayers, support and loving kindness.
May you and your family be blessed with good health, happiness and joy in every moment of your life. May freedom be a reality for us all.