First Permanent Atheist Monument On Government Property

Last year, a christian group installed a 6-ton granite monument featuring the 10 Commandments on county property in front of the courthouse in Bradford County, Florida. The group, American Atheists, immediately filed suit. They did so because allowing that monument on government property amounted to an establishment of religion by the county government (or at the very least a government preference for a certain religious tradition). That is not only unconstitutional, but was a slap in the face to county residents who are not christian or jewish.

That left the county government with a dilemma. They could waste a lot of count money trying to defend that monument, and considering recent court decisions, still wind up losing -- or they could negotiate a settlement with the atheist group. They chose the latter. The result of that settlement will allow the atheist group to put up a monument of their own on county property (and presumably, so could other religious groups -- muslims, sikhs, buddhists, hindus, etc.).

The picture above is of the monument the atheists have built (it's under the tarp). The 1,500 pound monument will be officially unveiled on June 29th -- when it will become the first permanent atheist monument on government property in the United States. It is a granite bench engraved with atheist quotations.

I approve of the county's decision to allow the monument, and the American Atheist decision to pay for its building and placement. My only worry is -- how long will it be before some "christians" deface or destroy it (as they have many atheist billboards across the country). Christians like to brag about how powerful their god is, but their actions tend to show they really don't believe that (since they can't allow any competing materials to exist). I expect the monument will be defaced or destroyed by the end of this summer.