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  • 2016-08-30 (xsd:date)
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  • Does the Red Cross Ban Prayer at Shelters, Even in Churches? (en)
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  • On 12 August 2016, catastrophic flooding devastated areas of Louisiana. The flooding lasted for at least ten days, and many Louisiana residents were displaced from their homes in the wake of the disaster. On 24 August 2016, Fox Nation columnist Todd Starnes published an editorial claiming that a police officer was asked to leave a Red Cross shelter for praying with victims of the floods: Starnes maintained that others told similar tales of being told they could not pray or read Bibles: Starnes' article spread with rumors that prayer was banned in all Red Cross shelters. On 26 August 2016, the Red Cross issued a statement addressing the claims: American Red Cross spokeswoman Nancy Malone spoke to reporters about the rumors, specifically addressing Higgins' assertion that he was ejected from a Red Cross shelter for praying with victims: The National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) guidelines referenced by Malone were extensive, published to the organization's web site [PDF] and ratified in 2014. A document titled Appropriate and Respectful Disaster Spiritual Care says that prayer and spiritual counsel are an integral aspect of comprehensive disaster response protocols: Higgins maintained he was asked to leave a Louisiana shelter for praying with victims, adding he was not proselytizing (and suggesting that proselytizing, not prayer, was at issue in that situation). However, Red Cross disaster aid recipients of all denominations are expressly permitted to pray (but encouraged not to proselytize) in shelters. Whatever happened, the Red Cross has not banned prayer in shelters, and its policies are clear and easy to find online. (en)
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