The American Atheists are threatening to sue Princeton, NJ if they proceed with plans to erect the memorial. They took issue with a beam that was salvaged from the ruins of the World Trade Center because a cross had been cut out of one side of the beam.
Photo courtesy of “The Times of Trenton/NJ.com”
“This particular beam has a religious symbol on it,” American Atheists president David Silverman told Fox News. “They have a beam with a religious symbol and that makes it a religious icon.”
Silverman said placing the beam on public land would be a “clear violation of the separation of church and state.”
He also said the cross symbol would send a terrible message to non-Christians. He said the city would be giving the “appearance that all of the people who suffered and died on 9-11 and their families are being memorialized by a Christian symbol.”
“That is wrong,” Silver told Fox News. “That is un-American.”
American Atheists attorney Bruce Afran sent a letter to city leaders warning they may file a lawsuit to stop the memorial.
“While the intention to commemorate those who died at the World Trade Center is admirable and appropriate for a community, the use of such a singular religious image will be grossly offensive and alienating to many people,” he wrote in a letter published by The Times of Trenton.
But Princeton Deputy Fire Chief Roy James said the cross symbol has nothing to do with religion.
“I’m a Jew,” he told Fox News. “Ironically, I’m fighting to have this cross there because I believe that someone’s story is behind that. That story needs to be told. It has nothing to do with religious faith. It has something to do with telling history.”
Photo special to Fox News.
James came up with the idea for a memorial several years ago. Last year, he got permission from the Port Authority to acquire a beam from the World Trade Center.
“We had to sign a paper saying we would take care of it and respect it,” he said.
The cross had already been cut out of the beam before it arrived in Princeton. James explained that in the days after the terrorist attacks, symbols like the cross and the Star of David were routinely cut out of the beams and given to family members
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