Tag Archives: ACLU

Air Force Might Oppose Homosexual Nurse’s Return

In the other case on DADT, former flight nurse Maj Margaret Witt, who was discharged under DADT, has claimed she can return to service while her case is appealed.  The DoJ is appealing the ruling in her favor, but did not request a stay on the ruling while it is appealed.  The ACLU has represented Witt.

The Air Force, for its part, said no request was made because they have had no indication Witt wanted to be reinstated, making a request for stay moot.  Should she begin an application, they would have a response, and might subsequently seek a stay.

Muslim Soldier Recommended for Discharge as CO

According to a local news station, PFC Naser Abdo has been recommended for honorable discharge five months after seeking status as a conscientious objector.

Abdo had previously been called a “traitor” by the American Islamic Forum for Democracy for seeking CO status while opposing only US military operations, not war in general.

As noted earlier, a Christian Ensign has sued the Navy with the help of the ACLU for not getting CO status, despite declaring himself a pacifist.

A Civilian City and “Military Religious Flags”

The North Carolina city of King has been in the news over the past few months over its decision to remove a Christian flag from a veteran’s memorial — after a threat of financial ruin from the ACLU.  Local citizens subsequently raised their own Christian flag, and then stood guard over it 24/7.

King officials, with pro bono assistance from the Alliance Defense Fund, recently voted to reinstate the memorial…sort of:  Read more

Government Prayers Continue to be Treated Differently

In a flashback to an item noted earlier this month, the city of Phoenix, AZ, was extremely grateful for the prayer at a City Council meeting led by Hindu Rajan Zed.

[Zed] started and ended the prayer with “Om”, the mystical syllable containing the universe, which in Hinduism is used to introduce and conclude religious work. Zed sprinkled few drops of sacred water from river Ganga in India around the podium before the prayer.

Zed also provided the Mayor and the AZ Secretary of State with a copy of the religious text Bhagavad-Gita.

Meanwhile, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State continues to complain about Christian prayers in other cities, as has the ACLU in the past.  Even Read more

Some Government Prayers Bring Lawsuits, Others Ignored

The city of Lancaster, California, has been criticized by the ACLU and sued by the Jewish Defense League for “sectarian Christian prayers” at city meetings.  In an interesting contrast, it does not appear either the ACLU or the JDL have said anything about the city of Vacaville doing the same thing in Sanskrit:

Acclaimed Hindu leader Rajan Zed will deliver invocation from Sanskrit scriptures before Vacaville City Council on [July 27th]. After Sanskrit delivery, he then will read the English translation of the prayer.

Sanskrit is considered a sacred language in Hinduism Read more

World Magazine Covers “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”

As noted by the ADF at Speak Up, World Magazine has a fairly comprehensive article on the topic of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” and the opposition to its possible repeal.  The article makes two important points:  First, that the repeal of DADT is only the “first step:”

Matt Coles, director of the ACLU’s Center for Equality, in a recent essay argued that the military could be the engine for even greater changes. “Getting rid of DADT won’t be enough,” Coles wrote. “There’s another little law called the Defense of Marriage Act that will have to go as well.”  Read more

Letter Claims Responsibility for Mojave Cross Theft

In an interesting (if unverifiable) development in the drama of the WWI memorial in Mojave, an anonymous letter was given to a local paper claiming responsibility and containing a numbered list of justifications for the theft.  The author says

If an appropriate and permanent non-sectarian memorial is placed at the site the cross will be immediately returned…Alternatively, if a place can be found that memorializes the Christian Veterans of WWI that is not on public land the Cross will promptly be forwarded with care and reverence for installation at the private site.

Interestingly, a wide variety of groups have disavowed the theft, including the Read more

Mount Soledad Cross Case at Appeals Court

The decades-long battle to remove the Mount Soledad cross from the hills of San Diego is once again at the appeals court.  In various formats, lawsuits have challenged the Mount Soledad cross for years.  In this most recent iteration, the US District court in July 2008 ruled in favor of those who support the cross remaining at its current location.

The basic complaint is that the cross is an inherently religious symbol, and by sustaining it on public land, the US government violates the Constitutional prohibition against “establishing” a religion.

The ACLU, which is representing the plaintiffs, has had to defend itself against accusations that it wants to remove crosses (and any memorials with them) from all public lands–including military cemeteries.  An attorney for the American Legion, Read more

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