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Posted on 09/19/2026 11:13:03 AM PDT by Morgana
The Amish community in Minnesota is pushing back amid claims of unfair government policies that purportedly fail to offer religious accommodations — and even reportedly led to one Amish man’s arrest.
First Liberty attorney Ryan Gardner said his firm is representing two Amish congregations in Mille Lacs County, Minnesota, arguing the county itself has “essentially criminalized being Amish.”
“As you might know, the Amish community lives by a pretty strict set of religious principles, and many of those involve not being involved in technology,” Gardner said. “And kind of keeping to themselves … they want to be able to live according to their religious beliefs, and a lot of what those beliefs require, frankly … to be set apart from modern society.”
According to First Liberty, problems began for these congregations during COVID-19, when county officials reportedly implemented a new permitting system for building structures and homes.
“It went from a paper form to an electronic form,” Gardner said. “As you might imagine, the Amish don’t really use electronic forms or the internet, so this was a significant problem, and they had no alternative for a long time.”
With no other option for simply getting clearance to build homes, he said “a lot of the people in these congregations just proceeded to build anyways because they didn’t have a choice.”
Gardner said Mille Lacs County did eventually change the policy to make a paper option available, but added there is an additional $50 fee for requesting permitting on paper.
“Pretty much the only people who are actually using that are the Amish, and so now they’re having to pay a special fee just to even start the permitting process,” the lawyer said. “And once they get in, there are more problems because they’re trying to impose all kinds of modern requirements that are just inconsistent with the Amish way of life.”
Gardner said officials have been so hard on the Amish that they even put one man in jail “for the crime of building and living in his home.”
“This particular individual had been living in his home for something like five years and then, suddenly, he’s criminally cited for it, and he goes to court, and he’s convicted,” the lawyer said. “And he is … immediately taken to jail.”
Gardner said it is “ludicrous” and “extreme” to prosecute someone for such a “petty” offense, and added that such a reaction is rare. He added that the Amish had purportedly tried to go to the county to work the issue out but were “met with hostility.”
“Here’s the kicker in all of this,” he continued, “Built into the very ordinance that the county is enforcing here is a provision that gives the county discretion to give exemptions to these requirements to anybody that it wants.”
First Liberty sent a letter to the county recently demanding they stop enforcement actions against the Amish, especially considering warrants that are currently out for others. They’re also looking for an exemption that would settle the issue once and for all, noting that, from his perspective, the Amish build insanely safe structures.
Mille Lacs County told CBN News that lawyers cannot comment on ongoing cases.
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“It went from a paper form to an electronic form,” Gardner said. “As you might imagine, the Amish don’t really use electronic forms or the internet, so this was a significant problem, and they had no alternative for a long time.”
It’s only going to get worse.
Great. Now liberals will have to hate the Amish.
The Amish came to America very specifically to get away from religious persecution. Where could they go now?
When parts of North Carolina were hit by the hurricane, some Amish carpenters showed up of their own accord. They spent weeks building small (not tiny) homes for those families that lost everything.
There is a great Amish article at The American Spectator.
While the article’s main theme is the amazing reproductive rates, there is also this:
“”In recent decades, the Amish have been shifting away from only agriculture. Now, about one-third of Amish men remain in agriculture, while the other two-thirds are engaged in manufacturing, construction, woodworking, small businesses, blacksmithing, and trades jobs.””
https://spectator.org/amish-population-surpasses-400000/
“As you might imagine, the Amish don’t really use electronic forms or the internet”
In the Pennsylvania Dutch Country, the Amish won’t use telephones in their homes. So they go to the neighbor’s house to borrow his phone to make calls.
I bet Minnesota falls all over themselves to accommodate followers of Mo-Ham-Head.
That's how they avoid getting calls about student loans and extended car warranties. Just don't have a phone! They obviously don't mind using them once in a while.
I bet you’re right. And the muzzies will seriously set about restricting Amish lifestyles and their way of life.
Paraguay is a wonderful refuge
I also believe the Amish are a sentinel species. Where they go, is typically a good place to consider. Where they leave is typically a good place to leave
Some of them do have telephones, but they keep them outside of the actual home, in a barn or a shed on their property.
I’ve also seen them riding in automobiles. They just ask someone to drive them. I don’t see how asking an ‘English’ person to file for them electronically is really any different.
Paraguay
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The weather is very different from Pennsylvania, but that didn’t stop Germans from emigrating.
I can see Omar’s Sammy Monkees having some mental issues with the decent and normal Amish people.
In Indiana there’s a place called the Essenhaus Inn where the Amish cooperste with those who run a small hotel, restaurant, and grocery. They sell furniture and cook the food at the restaurant, and you can buy homemade peanut butter, jams, bread, and pies.
Pies.... *___*
That peanut butter pie is one of the best I’ve ever had. Better than mine, to be honest... And I do everything from scratch.
*cooperate
Darn you! Now I am hungry!
If you’re a government and you can’t get along with the Amish, youre just terrible
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