Easter Display Removed from St. Paul City Hall

March 24, 2006

Source: Beliefnet

Wire Service: AP

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/188/story_18830_1.html

On March 24, 2006 the Associated Press reported, "A small Easter display was removed from the [St. Paul] City Hall lobby on Wednesday out of concern that it would offend non-Christians. The display - a cloth Easter bunny, pastel-colored eggs and a sign with the words 'Happy Easter' - was put up by a city council secretary. They were not purchased with city money. Tyrone Terrill, the city's human rights director, asked that the decorations be removed. Terrill said no citizen had complained to him... The council president, Kathy Lantry, said the removal wasn't about political correctness. 'As government, we have a different responsibility about advancing the cause of religion, which we are not going to do,' she said. It's not the first time a holiday symbol has been removed from City Hall. In 2001, red poinsettias were briefly banned from a holiday display because they were associated with Christmas."