ACLJ Files Lawsuit Against New York Town for Excluding Nativity Scene From Public Square

Last month, we warned officials in Brighton, New York, that they could not constitutionally exclude a Nativity scene from a Christmas display in the town square while allowing other holiday displays and decorations. We gave the town every opportunity to correct its unconstitutional policy voluntarily.

Instead of complying with the Constitution, town officials chose to ignore our demand for compliance with the law and have decided to continue to engage in viewpoint discrimination to exclude our client’s religious speech: a Nativity scene.

The ACLJ just took the next step by filing a federal lawsuit to protect our clients’ First Amendment rights.

At the heart of this case is a simple constitutional principle: Government officials cannot open a public forum for private holiday expression and then exclude certain speech simply because it is religious or less favored. The First Amendment requires government neutrality toward religion – not hostility.

As we explained in our earlier legal demand to Brighton, our client sought to display a traditional Nativity scene in the town’s public Christmas display. While the town permitted another religious holiday display, it singled out the Nativity for exclusion because of its religious message.

That is precisely the kind of viewpoint discrimination the First Amendment forbids. The Supreme Court has repeatedly made clear that religious speakers and religious expression cannot be treated as second-class participants in the public square. When the government creates a forum for private expression, it cannot pick and choose which viewpoints are welcome. The government may not sanitize the public square by excluding religious viewpoints while welcoming secular ones.

Our lawsuit seeks to ensure that our clients receive the equal treatment the Constitution guarantees and to prevent government officials from continuing to discriminate against religious expression during the Christmas season.

This case is about much more than one Nativity scene. Protecting the right to display it is about safeguarding the freedom for all Americans to express their beliefs openly and joyfully.

The ACLJ has successfully defended religious liberty in courts across the country for decades, and we remain committed to ensuring that public officials respect the constitutional rights of people of faith.

We will continue fighting this case until our clients receive the equal treatment the Constitution demands. Join us as we defend the rights of Christians in the public square. Sign our petition.