An atheist organization filed recently a lawsuit in New York to bar the presentation of the “World Trade Center Cross” as part of a memorial exhibition to commemorate 9/11.

The American Atheists, which filed its lawsuit last week, said in its suit that the cross is a violation of the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, and that atheists “are being subjected to and injured in consequence of having a religious tradition not their own imposed upon them.”

Atheist group sues over “World Trade Center Cross”

Dan Blair, communications director of AA, told the Wall Street Journal, “We can appreciate people’s emotional attachment to this [memorial] but that shouldn’t override the Constitution,”

On its website, the AA said that the cross is “an impermissible mingling of church and state.”

Small letter “t”

Blair Scott of AA said on Fox News, “It’s not the cross per se that’s an issue. It’s just a small letter ‘t’ among many junctions among thousands that were in the World Trade Center that many consider miraculous. It was blessed by clergy, they held church services at it, it was worshiped at, prayed at, it was turned into a religious idol.”

Martha McCallum, Fox newscaster told Scott, “All the more reason why you shouldn’t object to having it there if it was just a ‘t’ and there were many of them at the World Trade Center. It’s a ‘t’ that happens to have survived and they want to put this ‘t’ that has people’s names inscribed on it in the museum.”

Firefighter, first responder

Tim Brown, who was also in the Fox News program, said of Scott, “He’s stirring up so many difficult emotions again by doing this. We don’t need to be put through this.” A former NYC firefighter and first responder, Brown lost some 100 friends in 9/11.

Brown said on Fox News, “Just because Blair or others don’t like it, doesn’t mean that it can’t be in the museum. They can’t just come in and make rules for everybody in the museum. What if Ladder Three, the fire truck that was lowered into the museum last week was crushed into the shape of a cross? Would he then want that taken out of the museum also?”

Brown said on Fox News that the AA lawsuit is more of a publicity grab “on the backs of my friends who have died on 9/11, who were murdered by Islamic terrorists. It’s shameful what you are doing.”

Scott denied that the lawsuit against the cross is being done for publicity.

Brown is filing a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the cross through the American Center for Law and Justice.

“This is another pathetic attempt to rewrite the Constitution and rewrite history by removing a symbol that has deep meaning and serves as a powerful remembrance to that fateful attack nearly 10 years ago,” Jay Sekulow, chief counsel, ACLJ, said on its website.

“We will aggressively defend the placement of this cross. This memorial, a powerful part of the history of 9/11, serves as a constitutionally sound reminder of the horrors that occurred nearly a decade ago,” Sekulow said.

The World Trade Center Cross is a steel beam in the shape of a cross that stayed put after the collapse of the Twin Towers on Sept. 11, 2001, and was discovered amid the rubble.

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An atheist organization in New York became upset and threatened recently to go to court because a new street sign honoring firemen from 9/11 has the word “heaven” in it.

The group, New York City Atheists, plans to go to court if the road sign, Seven in Heaven Way, is not taken down because they say it violates the principle of separation of church and state.

“We’re supposed to be a secular nation,” Kenneth Bronstein, president of the atheist group said. “There really should not be any religious symbolism or signage in public places.”

The name, which was selected to honor seven fallen firefighters from Ladder Co. 101/EngineCo.202, was approved by the City Council and Community Board 6.

The road was formerly called Richards St. and is located in Brooklyn. The name was changed on behalf of the seven firemen who lost their lives in the line of duty during 9/11.

Bronstein told The Daily Mail, “We feel that any and all people who died in 9/11 should be remembered and honored.”

However, he said using the term “heaven” clearly refers to Christianity.

“It’s improper for the city to endorse the view that heaven exists. It links Christianity and heroism,” David Silverman of American Atheists told The Daily Mail.

Instead, they recommended the name, “We Remember the 7-911” in place of Seven in Heaven Way.”

Some question why the atheist organization is only complaining now. “There was a public process, and they had ample opportunity to make their feelings known,” Craig Hammerman of Community Board 6 told the New York Daily News.

Others believe that the bereaved are the ones who should determine how they want to honor their loved ones.

“That’s nonsense. The families should honor their loved ones any way they want,” Ambriena Insausti, a resident of Manhattan, told The Daily Mail.

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A group of atheists from Florida filed a lawsuit recently against the City of Lakeland  because the city commission always start its meetings with prayer.

The Atheists of Florida said they are outraged at the use of the name “Jesus Christ” during prayers before the meetings.

They also object to the fact that a member of clergy is called upon to lead the invocation, FOX News said.

In their suit Atheists of Florida said the invocations are unconstitutional, sponsor religion and discriminates against nonbelievers. They also said most of the prayers are given by Christian clergy and exclude Buddhists, Mormons and Unitarians, The Ledger said.

Instead of prayer, the atheist group maintains that a moment of silence should be had with everyone staying seated.

Ellen Beth Wachs, director of Lakeland’s Atheists of Florida said, “That way no one is uncomfortable. It’s not government’s business to tell me what to do in my religious life,” Tampa Bay Online reported.

Tim McCausland, attorney for Lakeland, disputed the atheists’ allegations. “Nothing could be further from the truth. Our city commission has a very long track record of being open and respectful of people’s issues,” Tampa Bay Online said.

McCausland said Council meetings have begun with invocations since the 1940s-1950s. Letters are sent to churches, synagogues, mosques and other religious groups asking for a volunteer for the invocation. Those who respond are rotated per city council meet, and none are rejected. The prayers are neither edited nor reviewed, Tampa Bay Online said.

Aside from Lakeland, two other cities that have been sued for Christian invocations are Houston, Texas and Lancaster, California, The Ledger said.

Courts have already ruled that prayers at government meetings are constitutional under some conditions. In the case of Lakeland, the 11^th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals already approved prayer, but said there should be reasonable effort to include all religious faiths, FOX News reported.

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Bus ads offering advice and protection for Muslims who would like to convert to Christianity have recently sparked controversy in New York and led to a lawsuit in Detroit.

The ads say: ” Fatwa on your head? Is your family threatening you? Leaving Islam? Got Questions? Get Answers” and include the website RefugeFromIslam.com.

Credit:RefugeFromIslam.com

Some versions add a toll free phone number, according to The Detroit News.

In New York, the $10,000 ad campaign came shortly after a proposal had been made to build a mosque and Islamic center near ground zero in lower Manhattan, according to ABC News.

Muslim leaders in New York have called the ad inflammatory, and a former Muslim, Samir Selmanovich, who runs an interfaith group called Faith House Manhattan, said the ads could be a source of provocation and escalate other issues, ABC News said.

Meanwhile in Detroit the Freedom Defense Initiative (FDI), who sponsored the ad, filed a lawsuit against the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART) buses for refusing to display the ad, according to Detroit News.

The lawsuit alleges that SMART violated the First and 14^th Amendment rights dealing with free speech and equal protection.  It also noted that SMART previously displayed an ad from the Detroit Area Coalition of Reason, an atheist group, which read “Don’t Believe in God?  You are not alone.”

Robert Muise, who is representing FDI said, “Such blatant discrimination is offensive, and it violates our Constitution,” according to Detroit News.

The FDI also filed a lawsuit in Florida when the paid ads were taken off the buses after the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) protested, according to the Refuge From Islam website.

The website noted that Muslims are able to run ads in America inviting people to convert to Islam, yet they cannot make information available to Muslims who would like to leave Islam.

The website also noted that at least three bus companies that advertised the dawah (invitation to Islam) in Florida turned down the FDI ad.

Pamela Geller, who runs the website that is placing the ads said, “There are people that live in real fear and whose lives are threatened.  We want to provide an opportunity for them to have a resource to go to. It’s a religious freedom issue,” she told ABC News.

She said that in response to the ads, “We’ve gotten a number of people who have reached out.  It’s not a huge number, but then again it’s not a huge campaign. I can’t reveal anything about them except to say they were looking for help,” ABC News reported.

Geller said her campaign was partly inspired by the case of Fatimah Rifqa Bary, the formerly Muslim teenager who converted to Christianity, then fled her home in Ohio and hid in Florida because she was afraid that her family might kill her, ABC News said.

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