In early July, a number of conservative civil rights groups joined the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), in writing a letter to the superintendent of the Rappahannock Regional Jail demanding that his jail respect the religious freedom and First Amendment rights of one of his prisoners.
In the letter sent to Superintendent Joseph Higgs, Jr., on July 9th, the ACLU - joined by Chuck Colson's Prison Fellowship group, the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, and the Rutherford Institute, among others - wrote that "based on concerns brought to our attention by Anna Williams, whose son was detained at the Rappahannock Regional Jail (the "Jail"). Ms. Williams, a devout Christian, wanted to support her son spiritually during his confinement at the Jail by sending him religious language, including passages from the Bible".
"Rather than delivering their letters to Ms. Williams' son, the Jail expurgated the religious material, citing variously as the reason for censorship "Internet Pages" and "Religious Material from Home", such censorship destroyed the religious messages Ms. Williams sought to convey to her son and reduced her letters to something resembling Swiss cheese."
In one incredible example, one of Ms. Williams' letters to her son was destroyed so much that all that was left of Ms. Williams' 3-page letter were the salutation, the first paragraph and the closing words: "Love, Mom." Such censorship of people of faith in America should not be tolerated.
Christian Coalition of America has from time to time worked with groups such as the ACLU and it is good to see that the ACLU is working with other conservative groups to uphold the First Amendment rights of all Americans, including Christians in America's prisons.