'Keep Christ in Christmas' banner displayed on city street opposed on Constitutional grounds

December 15, 2011 By God Discussion

In Pitman, N.J., Christmas music is heard on the streets, holiday decorations abound. But one display by the Knights of Columbus has stirred controversy.

The controversial display is a banner that reads "Keep Christ in Christmas."

A person offended by the banner displayed over a public roadway contacted the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), which says the banner is unconstitutional. "The government does not have the power to endorse a religious viewpoint," said FFRF spokesperson Andrew Seidel. FFRF sent a letter to the town asking that it remove the banner or in the alternative, allow FFRF to display an anti-religious sign.

The town says that it is not violating the Constitution. "That sign is attached to a privatebuilding, attached to Atlantic City Electric's phone pole, and it's over a county road," the mayor said, adding that the sign had been displayed there for 40 Christmases. "It's a sad state of affairs that our country — we cowtail to the minority and not the majority of people that would like to see things like that stay."

A woman declared to MSNBC's News Station 10 reporter, "It's about time people like myself start standing up in this country and say we've had enough."

Town officials plan on telling FFRF that they will not take the sign down because it is not attached to town property. FFRF says that this is not acceptable because the banner is over a public roadway.

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