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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today the Supreme Court handed down a victory for the Bladensburg, Maryland World War I Veterans Memorial in the case of American Legion v. American Humanist Association. While the ruling protected the Peace Cross memorial and similar historic, religiously-themed public monuments, it stopped short of overhauling our confused Establishment Clause jurisprudence – a step which is long overdue. Travis Weber, Vice President for Policy and Director of the Center for Religious Liberty at Family Research Council, who co-authored and filed an amicus brief in favor of the Bladensburg Peace Cross, responded today in a statement:
“Today, the Supreme Court delivered a much-needed win for the Peace Cross and similar memorials. In no way do such memorials violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
“However, this decision leaves in place the tangled confusion of past Establishment Clause opinions, which are currently being used to remove religious messages, signs, and symbols from public squares around our country. These issues will continue to arise, and we are thankful for those on the bench who point this out. Further, this case reveals the incredible importance of judges and justices on the bench who view the Constitution as originalists.
“As we stated in our amicus brief, religion has a natural, proper, and even essential role in our public life and the life of our military. We are grateful for the originalist result the Supreme Court delivered today and will continue to advocate for the Court to correct the grave confusion that exists in current Establishment Clause jurisprudence,” concluded Weber.
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