High court hears religious monument dispute



Ruling could allow almost anyone to erect a monument in a public park



(ap from froth's)





WASHINGTON - A small religious group's fight to place a monument in a public park is at the center of a Supreme Court dispute over governments' power to limit speech.

Pleasant Grove City, Utah, is asking the justices in arguments Wednesday to allow it to reject the donation of a display from the religious group known as Summum.

The Salt Lake City-based group wants to erect its "Seven Aphorisms of Summum" monument in the city's Pioneer Park, which is home to a Ten Commandments monument that was donated in 1971 by another private group.



The Summum argued, and a federal appeals court agreed, that Pleasant Grove can't allow some private donations in its public park and reject others.

Arguments were to be heard by the Supreme Court at 10 a.m. Justices also are expected to issue their first ruling of the term in one of the cases that has been heard since the court term began Oct. 6.

In the religious monuments case, Pleasant Grove officials are supported by federal, state and city governments, plus veterans organizations.

They worry that a ruling for the Summum would allow almost anyone to erect a monument in a public park, including people with hateful points of view, or lead to the removal of war memorials and other longstanding displays.





(me here- i've been saying this for YEARS. that's why i don't want any religion in public schools. i am all for freedom of religion, in one's home, with one's family, in a chosen place of worship OR the freedom to not believe or to simply state that one does no know if there is or isn't a deity.

it can get very ugly, very fast when these things like this court case come about)