I "ZOT" you on my birthday!
Posted on 12/22/2004 5:18:21 AM PST by Ellesu
Area atheists are planning to protest local Circuit Court Judge Ashley McKathan's "Ten Commandments robe" today, in front of the First Baptist Church in Opp.
At noon today (Wednesday), former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore will be in attendance at a Rotarian meeting in the church's fellowship hall, where he has said he will publicly support McKathan's robe.
Larry Darby, president of the Montgomery-based Atheist Law Center, organized the protest and has called for fellow atheists to join him to voice their non-support.
"Our presence in Opp (Wednesday) is important because Alabama is receiving a lot of negative publicity at this point in time, much like we did during the three years Moore's 'Holy Rock' was inside the judicial building," Darby remarked.
"Better informed or enlightened people view Alabama as a throwback to the Dark Age or Colonial America when religious liberty did not exist," he added. "Our presence signifies that Alabama will not go backward into the 21st century without a fight."
Judge McKathan's judicial robe, and its golden-yellow King James version of the Decalogue, has sparked national debate and coverage.
McKathan remarked in an interview shortly after he began wearing the robe last week that he felt the law and "the truth" had been too greatly separated, and after weighing the issue, he decided to don the Ten Commandments across his chest while on the bench in the Covington County courthouse.
Darby asserts that his position as a non-believer is unpopular, but still holds that McKathan's decision is wrong.
"Being atheist in rural Alabama is not easy," Darby said, mentioning that, as of late Tuesday afternoon how many people will join him in the protest.
Darby, who was quite outspoken during the entire judicial debacle surrounding former justice Moore and his display of the Ten Commandments, believes that he's doing what's right.
Yesterday, the Conecuh County-native said that he had spoken with the police chief in Opp to announce the presence of the protesters, and had garnered approval as long as the assembly remained peaceable.
"When courts, particularly appellate courts, address issues of religion encroachment into government, community perceptions are part of the analysis," Darby explained.
"I urge atheists to engage in public demonstrations in order to make it known to various communities that, one, atheists exist everywhere and, two, we are citizens under the constitution, as are religious people and, three, we object to pious politicians using the machinery of government to promote religion," continued Darby.
Mac Clover, of Daleville, is the director of the organization, Wiregrass Atheists. Like Darby, Clover is against McKathan's wearing a judicial robe embroidered with biblical scripture.
"What if he had the five pillars of Islam (instead)?" Clover asked. "Some people would disagree with that.
Clover remarked Tuesday that he feels judges are supposed to be "impartial" in every way.
"Someone walking into a courtroom might feel like they're at a disadvantage at the beginning," Clover said. "As an atheist, which is what I am, I would feel uncomfortable going into that courtroom."
Clover, a military official based at Ft. Rucker, says that, had he known of the Rotarian meeting featuring guests Moore and McKathan sooner, he would have been in attendance at today's protest.
He, like Darby, encourages other atheists and people opposed to Judge McKathan's robe to attend the protest.
"(Darby's) certainly exercising his constitutional rights by going," Clover said. "If it's open to the public, there shouldn't be a problem with it. I've been to several protests in the past," Clover added. "We don't brow-beat anybody.
"Atheism is not a popular idea for people to hold, but there is no evidence to suggest that there's some type of supernatural being out there," the Wiregrass man said.
"For the majority to trample on the rights of the minority -- that's not right."
Darby contends that Moore and McKathan are both representatives of government, and it's on that basis, in part, that he's protesting.
"They are supposed to be representative of equal justice for all Americans, religious and irreligious," Darby said. "But abusing the power and privilege of their offices, namely to inject or merge their religion into civil law, they effectively confer privilege upon citizens who agree with their religious viewpoints. It's wrong for any legislative or executive branch employee to promote religion 'on the job' but it is particularly egregious when a judge, who may have control over your property, liberty or life sends a signal that if someone in their state comes before them, they might be subjected to religious bigotry."
Darby, Paul Sweeney of Prattville, Tom Kirke, and others plan to protest in Opp today.
Himself an attorney, Darby says that he'll stand behind his views.
"Yes I will stick with this issue and other issues of religion encroachment into government," said Darby. "Article VI and the First Amendment to the Constitution dictate government neutrality in matters of religion," he continued.
"I hope atheists who live in the Wiregrass will begin to speak out because of all this. They are at a greater risk of religious discrimination by Judge McKathan than I am. But the Atheist Law Center will do whatever we can to assist."
McKathan stated previously that the embroidered lettering on his robe wasn't meant to be blatantly overt.
Moore, who was ousted from his position as chief justice in 2003 because he refused to comply with a judge's order to remove a 2 1/2-ton granite monument from the state's judicial building, strongly supports McKathan.
"I applaud Judge McKathan," Moore commented. "It is time for our judiciary to recognize the moral basis of our law."
According to several organizers, today's Rotarian meeting at the fellowship hall of First Baptist in Opp, is expected to draw quite a crowd.
Darby and others who share his beliefs and oppositions to McKathan and Moore, will be among them apparently.
"I grew up in south Alabama and I hate to see it move toward theocracy," Darby said. "Alabama is a great place to live when you take away the fact that government employees waste time or ignore doing their jobs while running around promoting religion.
" ... It's a much smaller scale, but Judge McKathan seems to be following Moore's footsteps, all the way to losing his job," Darby commented. "It is an insult to the citizens in Covington County."
"Being atheist in rural Alabama is not easy," Darby said
theocracy:
a political unit governed by a deity (or by officials thought to be divinely guided)
The atheists aka aclu aka libs are totally out of control lately!
I bet 6 "atheists" show.
There is no such article in the Constitution? Do they have it in Australia?
The theocratic trend in US is very worrisome, maybe the next Iran is on the horizon?
Or perhaps the anti-Christian stormtroopers will have us all wearing yellow crosses soon?
What does an atheist know about what's right? If there's no God to set the rules, all that's left is the law of the jungle; kill or be killed.
Atheists believe in nothing of value...
I "ZOT" you on my birthday!
Happy Birthday!!!
And how hard is it to not believe in God? If it is hard to manage, then perhaps they should give Him more thought.
I don't believ in the Easter Bunny, but I don't try to keep it out of my sight and hearing.
I went to the First Babtist church in Opp that day at 12:30, not to protest, but to observe. It was raining. Their where no protesters. According to the Star News the next day, their where 4 protesters but they left as soon as it began to rain. I took pictures of the fellowship hall and of the people inside but never actually saw Moore or McKathan. Personally I object to McKathan and Moore. Using a position of governmental power to promote your personal religion is wrong.
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