Humanist Files Lawsuit to Remove World War I Memorial
By Joseph DeCaro, Worthy News Correspondent
WASHINGTON D.C. (Worthy News)– A secular group filed a federal lawsuit last week to remove a World War I memorial that honors Maryland residents who died serving their country, according to The Washington Times.
The American Humanist Association filed a lawsuit against Maryland’s Capital Park and Planning Commission claiming that the 40-foot Bladensburg Peace Cross memorial — located at the intersection of Baltimore Avenue and Annapolis Road — violates the separation of church and state.
Plaintiff Steven Lowe said he was shocked when he first saw the cross and still gets upset every time he drives by it.
According to his complaint, Lowe “believes that the Bladensburg Cross associates a Christian religious symbol with the state and gives the impression that the state supports and approves of Christianity, as opposed to other religions, and that the state may even prefer Christians and Christianity over other religions. As a non-Christian, Mr. Lowe is personally offended and feels excluded by this governmental message.”
Town administrator John Moss said the Bladensburg Cross has historic significance to Prince George’s County and does not endorse any particular religion.
“The cross memorializes our veterans,” Moss said. “It was never meant to be a religious icon”.
In a similar court case, atheists who were upset and offended upon seeing the Ground Zero Cross on display in the 9/11 Memorial Museum at the World Trade Center were represented by the secular American Atheists. But in 2013, U.S. District Judge Deborah Batts ruled that the 17-foot-high cross — which served as a spiritual symbol for workers at ground zero — was not an endorsement of Christianity.
Currently there are no plans to remove either cross from its place.
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