ADF's Christmas Project seeks to clear up misconceptions about seasonal religious expression.
The Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) announced last week it has more than 950 allied attorneys available nationwide to help anyone who is faced with an improper attempt to censor celebrations of Christmas in schools or on public property.
Alan Sears, president of ADF, said unfortunate myths about religious expression at Christmastime have prompted many wrongful acts of government censorship.
"ADF's goal is to inform, educate and help protect the rights of the 95 percent of Americans who celebrate Christmas," he said. "The fear, intimidation and disinformation spread by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and its allies over the years will not be changed overnight."
Although school and city officials are often intimidated by anti-religious rhetoric and choose to err on the side of censorship, Sears said there is no legal basis for eradicating Christmas from the calendar.
• The U.S. Supreme Court has never ruled that public schools must ban the singing of religious Christmas carols or prohibit the distribution of candy canes and Christmas cards.
• School officials do not violate the Constitution by closing on religious holidays such as Christmas and Good Friday.
• School officials are not legally obligated to recognize all other religious holidays simply because they officially recognize Thanksgiving and Christmas.
• Schools may use the term "Christmas Vacation" without offending the Constitution.
• Government-sponsored Christmas displays are not banned as some people believe. When faced with the question of whether a Christmas display is constitutional, a court will examine whether it is celebrating a holiday or promoting religion. The judge will then determine whether a sufficient number of secular objects are in close proximity to the religious display to render it a constitutional community observance.
"Frankly, it's ridiculous that Americans have to think twice about whether it's OK to say Merry Christmas," Sears said. "Thanks to the ACLU and its allies, Christmas isn't what it used to be."
ADF is offering to represent people, school districts or other entities -- free of charge -- to defend their freedom of speech regarding Christmas.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
ADF offers an informational pamphlet titled "The Truth about Religious Expression at Christmastime" and many other resources on a special Christmas Web site.
