The
following excerpts are from The
Washington Post:
NEW
YORK — A cross-shaped beam from the wreckage of the World Trade
Center can remain on display in the National Sept. 11 Memorial and
Museum at Ground Zero, a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals ruled, dismissing a lawsuit brought by atheists.
American
Atheists filed a federal suit in 2012 claiming the 17-foot display at
the museum built with a mix of public and private funds was
unconstitutional. The group said its members suffered from both
physical and emotional damages from the presence of the beamed cross,
resulting in headaches, indigestion and mental pain.
The
atheist group filed an appeal after a lower court dismissed the
lawsuit, shifting the focus from the cross to asking for an added
plaque that would say something like “atheists died, too.”
An
observer would understand that the cross was also an inclusive symbol
for any persons seeking hope and comfort in the aftermath of the 9/11
attacks, federal Judge Reena Raggi wrote in the court’s decision.
“Such
an observer would not understand the effect of displaying an artifact
with such an inclusive past in a Museum devoted to the history of the
September 11 attacks to be the divisive one of promoting religion
over nonreligion,” she wrote. “Nor would he think the primary
effect of displaying The Cross at Ground Zero to be conveying a
message to atheists that they are somehow disfavored ‘outsiders,’
while religious believers are favored ‘insiders,’ in the
political community.”
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Ground Zero cross can stay at 9/11 museum, appeals court rules - The Washington Post
