Landmark Religious Freedom Victory at U.S. Supreme Court

In a victory for religious freedom, the United States Supreme Court ruled 7-2 yesterday to preserve the nearly 100-year old Bladensburg WWI Veterans Memorial, along with memorials like it bearing crosses and religious symbols across the country. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit had originally declared the historic cross-shaped Bladensburg World War I Veterans Memorial unconstitutional, which has stood since 1925 in honor of 49 Bladensburg-area men who died during WWI.

First Liberty Institute, led by Texas Values Board Member Kelly Shackelford, represented The American Legion in this monumental case (The American Legion v. American Humanist Association).

“This is a landmark victory for religious freedom. The days of illegitimately weaponizing the Establishment Clause and attacking religious symbols in public are over,” said Kelly Shackelford, President, CEO, and Chief Counsel to First Liberty. “Our Founders would have been appalled at this attempt to make the government hostile to our religious heritage, history, and symbols. The attempted perversion of our Constitution is now over, and every American now has more freedom than they have had in decades, with a government no longer hostile to people or expressions of faith.”

Texas Values applauds this victory for religious freedom and for all veteran memorials that have a cross.  We are glad that the atheists’ efforts to erase the sacrifice of American soldiers failed.

Learn more about this case here.

A copy of the opinion can be read here.