Posted on 12/03/2004 8:49:54 AM PST by kattracks
(CNSNews.com) - The town of Bay Harbor Islands, Fla., is being sued by a Christian resident who has been prevented from displaying Nativity scenes during the Christmas season by city officials who allow the main street to be decorated with Jewish religious symbols for Hanukkah.
On behalf of Sandra Snowden, who has offered twice to pay for the Christmas decorations with her own money, a federal lawsuit was filed on Thursday against the town and its officials by the Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Mich.
According to a statement from Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel of the center, the town has adorned the lampposts lining its main street with menorahs and stars of David and has allowed a synagogue to display its 14-foot menorah at the entrance to the city.
The lawsuit was filed after Snowden was denied permission for the second consecutive year to display a Christian nativity, Thompson added.
"As we approach Christmas, we are once again confronted with a town that believes it is legally acceptable to discriminate against Christian religious symbols celebrating this holy season," Thompson said. "This is one of the most outrageous examples of such discrimination."
Starting last December, after the menorahs and stars of David had been displayed, Snowden contacted the town and requested a more inclusive display of holiday decorations, since only Jewish religious symbols were featured.
Then-Vice Mayor Isaac Salver responded in a letter stating that he did not agree with her ideas about the decorations and commented: "It is sad to see one get deeply offended by something as trivial as holiday decorations."
On December 8, 2003, Snowden asked at a town council meeting to display a nativity scene alongside the synagogue's menorah. Council members responded by again characterizing her request as trivial, explaining that the issue was not time-sensitive and therefore not necessary for the council to act upon until after Christmas.
When Snowden attempted to explain her nativity display, council members refused any further discussion and abruptly adjourned the meeting.
In October 2004, Snowden again asked to display her Nativity scenes alongside the Jewish religious symbols. The town again refused her request, and Snowden sued, claiming that the officials have violated her free speech and equal protection rights, as well as the establishment clause of the United States Constitution.
Center attorneys filed a similar lawsuit last year against the town of Palm Beach, Fla., for its refusal to respond to repeated requests to display a nativity alongside town-sanctioned menorahs. This past May, a federal district court judge acknowledged the importance of recognizing religious holidays and ordered Palm Beach to treat all religious symbols equally.
Elsewhere, the center is pressing its case against the New York City public school system, whose written policy permits students to display the Jewish menorah and the Islamic star and crescent but prohibits students from displaying Christmas nativity scenes.
The Thomas More Law Center defends and promotes the religious freedom of Christians, family values and the sanctity of human life through education, litigation and related activities. For further information, visit the center's website.
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I thought this was about Christmas, FL.
Blue State morals at work, and just waiting for the Red State backlash to occur.
"Then-Vice Mayor Isaac Salver..."
A bigoted, racist Jew? Say it isn't so?
Christmas has no significance for Jews, so why are they using menorahs and the star of david to decorate the town for a Christian celebration?
Christ-mas. You'd think that the name would be a HINT as to what this celebration is all about.
I hope she wins. I'm so sick of Christianity being trampled by these "racists". (hey, I can use that word too!!)
---"A bigoted, racist Jew? Say it isn't so?"
Just a liberal who happens to be Jewish, perhaps. He knows that attacks on Christianity are fair game, and quite frankly, the core of the liberal agenda.
I doubt he'd ban the crescent moon. He knows better in our PC world.
We KNOW that the aclu is actively fighting against the city's discriminatory policies! Right?? NO????
Ah yes, a higher power with moral absolutes...the old arch enemy of the Liberal.
I hope these leftist, anti-ethics-and-morals fools keep it up. Each time they try to suppress Christianity and its values, they put another nail in their long overdue anti-American coffins....
A house at the end of my block has a HUGE nativity scene out on the grass along the street that is supposedly owned by the city. It's been there at least a week. But it's new this year.
We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore. Thank God for the Thomas Moore Law Center. They're the good guys.
Thank you for posting this. I sent a letter to Thomas Moore, thanking them for defending my religious freedoms.
Does anyone have any information on stores that have not "caved" and have not removed all vestiges of Christmas?
I am boycotting Macy's, Target, and would like a list of stores that are tolerant of my Christian faith.
"Chabad at University of Miami brought its world-famous public menorah-lighting ceremony to the UM campus for the second consecutive year."
Isaac Salver, a councilman from the Town of Bay Harbor Islands, helped students arrange for officials of South Florida cities to join in the celebration and issue proclamations acknowledging the great work that Chabad has contributed to UM and surrounding communities.
Bay Harbor Islands, Coral Gables, Hialeah, Hialeah Gardens, Pinecrest, and South Miami participated.
Contact info:
BAY HARBOR ISLANDS
9665 Bay Harbor Terrace
Bay Harbor Islands, FL 33154
townhall@bayhaboislands.org
Mayor: Isaac Salver (305) 866-6241
Vice Mayor: Peter G. Lynch (305) 866-6241
Councilmember: George Reycraft (305) 866-6241
Councilmember: Jill Rosenstein-Serfaty (305) 866-6241
Councilmember: Ileene S. Wallace (305) 866-6241
Councilmember: Kenneth Weinstein (305) 866-6241
Councilmember: Robert Yaffe (305) 866-6241
"the town has adorned the lampposts lining its main street with menorahs and stars of David "
Those are "Holiday Candlesticks" not Menorahs, and "Holiday Stars", not Stars of David. The Christians just have to refer to the Creche as a "Holiday Stable".
"It all started last December, when the 53-year-old Bay Harbor Islands resident sent a complaint to the town council. Snowdon called the six Menorahs and six Stars of David that line the main street during Hanukkah, one-sided.
By comparison, she said, the red and green poinsettias on the Kane Concourse are just plants. Snowdon demanded that the symbols reflecting only one religion come down immediately." "Living in this culturally diverse community, Bay Harbor and also Miami-Dade County, I am not certain what message our town is trying to send out to visitors and residents that travel the Kane Concourse during this holiday season," she wrote.
The letter raised the ire of Vice Mayor Isaac Salver, who is Jewish. Salver admitted that he called Snowdon's landlord and complained to the landlord's parents and the rabbi of the local synagogue.
"I just thought it might be important for a Holocaust survivor to know what's going on in our town," Salver said, referring to his efforts to alert the landlord's parents.
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