There’s no room for images of Jesus in the Jackson
City School District in the U.S. state of Ohio.
The school has been
ordered to remove a portrait of Jesus from its grounds after legal
action was taken by two atheist groups, the ACLU (American Civil
Liberties Union) and the FFRF (Freedom From Religion Federation).
These
groups claimed that “this particular kind of religious artefact (in a
public school) is unconstitutional.”
As a result, the school now has to
pay damages and legal fees amounting to $95,000.
James Hardinam, legal director for the ACLU of Ohio, told Associated Press
that “all of this was unnecessary. The law is pretty clear…the display
of this particular kind of religious artefact (in a public school) is
unconstitutional.”
The school is considering contesting this in court
but lawyers have advised against this.
The school’s insurance company
does not intend to cover the legal fees.
The school’s heads say the portrait has been in the school for more
than 60 years.
They also claimed that the image was kept in a room where
not many people entered and was displayed next to portraits of other
historical figures.
This apparently was not good enough for the two
atheist groups.