Washington, DC – Lawsuit Opposes “In God We Trust” in the Capitol Visitor Center
- November 16, 2009 - כ"ט חשון תש"ע
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Washington, DC – The American Center for Law and Justice has filed a legal response to a lawsuit that opposes religious engravings in the Capitol Visitor Center in Washington.
In the amicus brief, the ACLJ asks the U.S. District Court for the western district of Wisconsin to dismiss claims that the use of “In God We Trust” as the national motto is a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
“Plaintiffs’ crusade, targeting religious expression in the federal government, serves no purpose other than to waste judicial resources at a time in our Nation’s history when those resources are needed in cases involving real threats to American liberties,” the legal group asserts.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a state/church watchdog and an association of atheists and agnostics, filed a lawsuit in July to stop the engraving of “In God We Trust” and the Pledge of Allegiance at the Capitol Visitor Center.
During an initial tour of the center, before it opened in December 2008, some members of Congress were irked that there were no prominent references to America’s religious heritage. Congressman Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) introduced legislation in May 2009 directing the Architect of the Capitol to engrave the two expressions at the entrance of the center.
The House and Senate passed the resolution, which also corrected mistakes in the center such as misidentifying the national motto as “E Pluribus Unum” (Out of many, one).