**SPECIAL REPORT** onenewsnow/legal-courts/2014/12/14/fl-state-capital-oks-satanic-christmas-display FL state capital OKs Satanic Christmas display Michael F. Haverluck (OneNewsNow) Sunday, December 14, 2014 With annual lawsuits contesting the constitutionality of Christian Christmas displays around government buildings becoming as much of a winter staple as Black Friday and photos booths at the local mall with Santa, many are finding the decision of officials from Florida’s state capitol confounding, which allows the Satanic Temple to erect a “holiday display” in Tallahassee’s rotunda. clip_image002After previously being denied a spot to erect its satanic display, state officials decided last year to allow the controversial setup with an affixed sign reading “offensive.” Pressing further — as many progressive agendas have been noted to do once getting their foot in the door — the Satanic Temple proposed its display this year along with a threat of legal action if state officials didn’t only accept their display, but also remove the “offensive” label from it. Americans United for the Separation of Church and State (AUSCS) provided the legal muscle this year to get the atheist temple prime real estate for its display alongside several others’ at the state capitol’s rotunda. Attorneys with the atheist legal group proudly provided a visual of the Satanic Temple’s holiday display that is slated to be erected from December 22 to 29: “The Temple’s proposed display depicts an angel falling from the sky into flames, accompanied by Bible verses and the message “Happy Holidays from the Satanic Temple,” AUSCS announced after receiving word of its victory. Expressing beliefs or just mocking another’s? AUSCS’s claims that it has legal grounds backing its push to have the mocking display erected for all to see. “Free speech is for everyone and all groups,” said AUSCS Executive Director Rev. Barry W. Lynn. “State officials simply can’t get into the business of deciding that some unpopular messages are ‘offensive’ and must be banned.” The Washington, D.C.-based organization dedicated to eradicate all traces of Christianity from the public square insists that the Satanic Temple proclaims itself to be “a religious organization dedicated to principles of empathy, personal autonomy and empirical reasoning.” AUSCS also justifies the inclusion of the temple’s display on the state capital’s rotunda by saying that last year, a wide array of themes were accepted, while the Satanic Temple’s was not. “In 2013, the rotunda housed a nativity scene, an atheist-themed message, a ‘Festivus Pole’ and a rendering of the Pastafarian Flying Spaghetti Monster — yet the Temple was denied access on the grounds that the proposed display was ‘grossly offensive.’” For years, the rotunda has been designated as an open forum for private speech where private groups are allowed to erect holiday-themed displays at their own expense every December. Because eligibility for space is determined by the Department of Management Services (DMS), AUSCS decided to get ahead of the game this year months before submissions were made by writing a letter to the agency on behalf of the Satanic Temple, arguing that a rejection of its display would violate its client’s freedom of religion, freedom of speech and right to equal protection under the law. After AUSCS received the decision it was looking for — gaining the admission of the temple’s proposed display — it pressed its plea further, threatening the DMS that its failure to omit the “offensive” label from the Satanic Temple’s display would result in legal action alleging a violation of the temple’s constitutional rights. The department backed down and will not post the written warning on the Satanic Temple’s display mocking Christianity, come December 22. Despite the victory, AUSCS attorneys argue that such offensive displays mocking Christmas must be allowed so that everyone’s voice can be heard, whether appropriate or not. “Although we are pleased that the state has finally agreed to allow the Satanic Temple’s display, our clients should not have been forced to find legal counsel and plan a lawsuit just to get access to an open forum,” AUSCS Senior Litigation Counsel Gregory M. Lipper contended. As offensive as they want to be? Lipper also insists that the government doesn’t have the right to censor any expression having to do with religion at the rotunda — even when it is intended to mock or denigrate another religion. This is opposed to the motivation behind Christian Christmas displays, which is primarily to express faith-based messages about the holiday and its significance. However, Lipper believes that denigrating another religion is equivalent to expressing one’s religious beliefs, asserting that the First Amendment supports free speech regardless of how offensive or inappropriate the message is. “The state can’t give itself the authority to decide whether certain religious messages are ‘offensive’ – it needs to allow everyone’s speech or no one’s speech,” Lipper continued. Christian displays not a statement … a message of love Addressing one of AUSCS’s frequent arguments around Christmastime every year that nativity scenes have constituted the government’s establishment of religion, Florida Prayer Network President Pam Olsen says Florida is no different from the rest of the country when it comes to Christmas displays and that Christian themes signify a freedom of expression, not an establishment of religion. Theres a lot of state capitols besides ours that are having Nativity scenes, Olsen declared. Its not government-sponsored religion, its freedom of religion, which makes America great.” Olsen insists that the intention behind Christian Christmas displays is not to stir up controversy over state-sponsored religion, but simply to wish everyone a merry Christmas through a Christian message of hope and love. “Our heart is not to cause any contention — its simply to say, ‘Merry Christmas,’” Olsen concluded. “Its really important that people understand that.
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 21:30:00 +0000
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