Publications and Media

This document outlines actions that faith-based organizations and community leaders can take to increase security. These six steps can help protect places of worship against potential threats of targeted violence in a cost-effective manner that maintains an open and welcoming environment.

On June 27 and 29, 2022, CRS hosted virtual protecting places of worship forums to provide interfaith communities with resources and information on securing their places of worship, help faith leaders build relationships with law enforcement, and answer questions. A total of more than 500 faith-based and other community members attended the forums.

Agenda

• Welcome and Introductions, Paul Monteiro, Director, U.S. Department of Justice, Community Relations Service and Harpreet S. Mokha, National Program Manager for Muslim, Arab, Sikh, South Asian, and Hindu, U.S. Department of Justice, Community Relations Service
• Overview of Hate Crimes Laws, Investigations, and Active Shooter Training, Michael Campion, Chief, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey
• Securing Places of Worship, Steven Long, Regional Protective Security Advisor, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency
• Grants and Other Resources, Mark Silveira, Senior Advisor and Branch Chief, Federal Emergency Management Agency
• Q&A

Many houses of worship are developing and updating plans and procedures to ensure the safety and security of their congregations, staff, and facilities. This guide provides houses of worship with information regarding emergency operations planning for the spectrum of threats and hazards they may face. It discusses actions that may be taken before, during, and after an incident in order to reduce the impact on property and any loss of life and it encourages every house of worship to develop an emergency operations plan (EOP).

CRS developed this facilitator guide to provide community leaders with step-by-step instructions on how to plan and implement a Protecting Places of Worship (PPOW) Forum. A PPOW Forum is a three-hour program in response to a series of violent acts against houses of worship in multiple communities across the United States and is designed to increase the security of local religious centers. This guide directly addresses the person responsible for organizing the PPOW Forum, referred to as the facilitator. The following is a link to the associated PPOW program brochure: https://www.justice.gov/file/1376571/download

The Community Relations Service (CRS) held a webinar, open to the public, which gave participants an opportunity to learn about CRS programs communities can use to prevent and respond to hate crimes and community conflicts. The webinar gave an overview of the following CRS programs: Bias Incidents and Hate Crimes Forums, Protecting Places of Worship, City-Site Program Identification and Resolution of Issues Together, and School-Student ProblemIdentification and Resolution of Issues Together. This document accompanied the webinar.

This Community Policing Dispatch article highlights how one police department is working to protect places of worship.

CRS brings together diverse leaders and stakeholders to educate communities on hate crimes and to find collaborative solutions for hate crime prevention and response. This fact sheet highlights CRS services that help communities address hate crimes including: Facilitated Dialogue; Hate Crime Forums; Protecting Places of Worship Forums; City and School-Problem Identification & Resolution of Issues Together (City-SPIRIT and School SPIRIT); Community Awareness Training; and Mediation.

CRS provides services to MASSAH communities to prevent and respond to community conflicts, hate crimes, and bias incidents. This brochure highlights CRS's services and four programs CRS offers that have been widely adopted in MASSAH communities: Engaging and Building Partnerships with Muslim Americans and Sikh Americans; Bias Incidents and Hate Crime Forums; Protecting Places of Worship Forums; and City and School-Problem Identification & Resolution of Issues Together (City-SPIRIT and School SPIRIT).

The Protecting Places of Worship forum is a three-hour program that provides faith-based leaders and congregations with information about state and federal hate crimes laws; law enforcement threat assessments; and steps to protect places of worship from potential hate crimes and other threats of violence. The program encourages the implementation of a security program, offers best practices for security, fosters networking and community outreach, and provides resources such as examples of security plans and community responses.