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Abstract: U.S. Muslims face virulent, entrenched opposition in constructing the cemeteries that allow them to bury their dead according to Islamic law and tradition. Despite state and federal laws designed to guard against acts of religious discrimination such as the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act ("RLUIPA"), local governments impede Muslim cemetery constructions via zoning ordinances and adjudicative permit denials. As a result of these efforts, Muslims experience unfair discrimination as local land control bodies unduly delay or block their attempts to build cemeteries. To better protect Muslims' rights in land use disputes, this Note advocates for amendments to RLUIPA's key provisions, namely, adding a definition of "substantial burden," delineating what land uses constitute "religious exercise," and creating measures to punish discriminatory action by local governments.
INTRODUCTION
In 2016, the Islamic Society of Greater Worcester ("Islamic Society") purchased a fifty-five acre plot of farmland in the small town of Dudley, Massachusetts.1 The Islamic Society intended to convert the plot into a burial ground where members could bury their dead according to Islamic tradition.2 In Islamic tradition, Muslims must be buried in their own cemeteries.3 The only other Muslim cemetery near Dudley, Massachusetts is located in Enfield, Connecticut, which is over sixty miles away.4 This is a far distance for Islamic Society members to travel to bury their dead, posing additional challenges for them to follow Muslim burial procedures.5 The fifty-five acre plot of farmland was therefore a prime location to construct a much closer Muslim cemetery.6 The process for converting that plot of farmland originally appeared as easy as buying the land and getting a permit to build the cemetery, but instead turned into a year-long fight between the Islamic Society and the town of Dudley ("Dudley"), attracting national and international attention.7
The fifty-five acre plot proposed for the construction of a cemetery was zoned as a residential area.8 Dudley law therefore required the Islamic Society to apply for a special permit to construct the cemetery.9 It was clear that the Islamic Society would face an uphill battle from the start of the special permit application process, an initial hearing on February 4, 2016 in front of the Dudley Zoning Board of Appeals ("Dudley Zoning Board").10 Many Dudley residents attended the hearing...