A US town has agreed to pay out more than £450,000 ($575,000) after being accused of using local laws to discriminate against Orthodox Jews.

Jackson Township in New Jersey reached a settlement resolving a discrimination lawsuit brought against the town over land use restrictions. 

The lawsuit, filed in 2021 by the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights, alleged the Township adopted “discriminatory” land zoning powers in 2017 which banned the establishment of yeshivas.

The adoption of these powers, the lawsuit says, also effectively banned the creation of eruvim and there were also allegedly restrictions on building sukkahs.

According to the lawsuit, Jackson Township officials and employees also allegedly engaged in discriminatory surveillance of the homes of Orthodox Jews and selectively targeted communal Jewish prayer gatherings. The suit said those practices violated New Jersey’s anti-discrimination law.

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Jackson Township in New Jersey (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

The court order requires the Township to repeal the measures that allegedly target Orthodox Jews and adopt new policies and procedures that protect religious freedom.

Jackson Township will also be required to form a multicultural committee composed of residents that will meet quarterly to combat discrimination and local officials will undergo anti-discrimination training.

Under the terms of the settlement, local officials will be required to notify the state of any decision or regulation that would affect local religious land use or practice. 

New Jersey will monitor Jackson Township’s compliance with the consent order for three years.

The town's $575,000 settlement consists of $275,000 in penalties, a $150,000 restitution fund for individuals harmed by the Township’s actions and $150,000 in suspended penalties if the town violates the consent order.

New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said: “We are firmly committed to eliminating discrimination and bias across our state, and we expect local leaders to comply with our robust anti-discrimination laws. 

“The settlement announced today is a powerful testament to our commitment to protecting residents’ right to religious freedom.”

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New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin (Photo: Getty)

Sundeep Iyer, director of the state Division on Civil Rights, added: “Religious freedom is a bedrock principle of American democracy, and we are deeply committed to protecting it here in New Jersey.  

“As hate and bias – including against the Jewish community – continue to rise, it is critical that we call out religious discrimination when we see it, and it is especially important that we hold public officials accountable when they treat people differently based on their faith.”

Officials and community groups in and around Jackson Township have previously been accused of trying to push out Orthodox residents.

Jackson Township borders the heavily Orthodox city of Lakewood, and Orthodox Jews have moved into the surrounding towns as Lakewood’s population swelled in recent years. 

A local Jewish synagogue sued Jackson Township in 2014 for blocking it from building a girl’s high school and in 2020, the US Justice Department sued the town alleging it banned religious boarding schools to keep out Orthodox residents. 

Jackson Township officials settled the federal suit last year for $200,000 and repealed the boarding school ban. It settled the synagogue’s suit in January for $1.35 million.