Indiana Town to Remove Cross from Top of Christmas Tree After ACLU Lawsuit Threat

Once again, the American Civil Liberties Union has succeeded in taking the Christ out of Christmas when it comes to the matter of small towns and holiday displays.

Officials of little Knightstown, Ind., a town roughly 40 miles east of Indianapolis, have decided to remove the cross that traditionally sits atop the evergreen tree in the town square because they determined they would not win the lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union that demanded the religious symbol be taken down.

Although the tree has been decorated with the cross for years, Knightstown resident Joseph Tompkins apparently decided he���d had enough. Tompkins served as the plaintiff of the ACLU���s lawsuit, which was brought by the group���s Indiana chapter. In the action, Tompkins was seeking the cross���s removal, unspecified monetary damages, and a ���declaration��� that the display of the cross on the tree is a violation of the First Amendment.

Lawsuits brought against local governments for similar displays on the basis that they violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment are nothing new.

Although the ACLU has again prevailed in this kind of action, WHAS11 News of Louisville, Ky. points out that Americans, by a clear majority, have no problem with various presentations of religious symbols on government property. WHAS11 cites previous polls done by Pew Research Center that show 83 percent of Americans have supported the display of Christmas symbols on government property, and that 74 percent of Americans were OK with the display of the Ten Commandments in government buildings.

Knightstown Town Council wrote in a Facebook post of its decision to take down the cross, saying:

���It is with regret and sadness that the Knightstown Town Council has had the cross removed from the Christmas tree on the town square and is expected to approve a resolution at the next council meeting stating they will not return the cross to the tree.���

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large