Recently Raised Church-State Separation Issues

Dear Editor:

Both Jeff Left and Red River Freethinkers have recently raised church-state separation issues. The following differences between his issue and ours should be kept in mind.
RRF has a clear position. The Ten Commandments monument on the Fargo Civic Center Mall is a permanent marker endorsing a specific religious tradition. It should be moved from public to private property.
RRF has a solid basis for its position. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals found a duplicate monument on city property in Elkhardt, Indiana to violate church-state separation. The Supreme Court indicated support for that interpretation in rejecting an appeal. Fargo is in the Eighth Circuit, and the finding does not necessarily apply, but our request clearly has substance. Furthermore, RRF is willing to provide speakers on this issue, and we are particularly interested in addressing groups hostile to our request.
RRF has no gripes. On Sept. 4, the City Commission, after receiving a near-unanimous Human Relations Commission recommendation that the monument be moved, referred the RRF request to a committee. This decision was criticized as dodging the issue. We think the City acted wisely. The City has several options in this complex situation, and each requires careful consideration. When RRF returns to this issue, we expect to pick it up at that level and to show that our position is the most practical of the alternatives and best honors the principle that government is to be neutral towards religion.
With regard to Harry Potter, Mr. Left’s actions reflect the opinions of a segment of the community that makes great show of its religious belief. The actions also raise the question of whether this segment knows anything more about religion than it knows about children’s literature.

Davis Cope
12/6/01