{"id":10364,"date":"2024-05-13T14:24:04","date_gmt":"2024-05-13T18:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/?p=10364"},"modified":"2024-05-13T14:24:04","modified_gmt":"2024-05-13T18:24:04","slug":"atheist-group-condemns-ten-commandments-monument-outside-minnesota-jail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/2024\/05\/atheist-group-condemns-ten-commandments-monument-outside-minnesota-jail.html","title":{"rendered":"Atheist Group Condemns Ten Commandments Monument Outside Minnesota Jail"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Itasca Community Television \/ Facebook<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The atheist group, the Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) has sent a letter<\/a> to a Minnesota jail after allegedly receiving complaints from residents and taxpayers about the massive 2-story Ten Commandments display set outside the new jail. The display also contains quotes on faith from known politicians and Americans such as Ronald Reagan and Thomas Jefferson. The FFRF accused the display of violating the Establishment clause. It stated that the Ten Commandments clearly had a religious message and not just a historical context and stated that, \u201cThe quotes advising prisoners to find answers in the bible and believe in God should also be removed. Constituents\u2014including prisoners\u2014have the right to be free from government proselytization. Prisoners do not shed their rights by virtue of being in prison. Federal courts of appeals have held that public prisons cannot coerce or otherwise promote religion to prisoners.\u201d The letter accused the jail of proselytizing. \u201cWhat the county has essentially done is to say to these inmates … that if they want the answers to their woes, it has to come from the Bible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Visitors to the new jail also shared their concerns. \u201cThe whole time I was thinking if I were in here, it would be very clear to me that I was not in a safe place,\u201d said<\/a> Grand Rapids resident Dana Butler. Itasca County Sheriff Joe Dasovich has taken responsibility for the display, although he did not oversee or approve its installation. \u201cI knew that it would cause people to feel a certain way,\u201d he said. He stated that he has heard a lot of support for the display to remain. \u201cI’ll take everything into account and make a decision, and I may not be happy with my decision,\u201d he said regarding taking down the display. \u201cLegal representation says that they should be painted over. We\u2019re leaving the county open to litigation,\u201d he said. \u201c\u2026 My job is to manage risk, daily, and I need to weigh the risks and make a decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lucas Thompson, Itasca County jail administrator oversaw the display and there are indications that he might have been aware of the potentially contentious nature of the display. During a tour of the jail, when asked how soon he expected to receive a complaint about the display, Corrections Deputy Garrett Smith was quoted as saying, \u201cI imagine it won\u2019t be long, but my boss was like, \u2018Well, I\u2019ll put them up until I can\u2019t,\u2019\u201d Smith told the tour attendee. \u201c\u2026 And he was like, \u2018Well, I\u2019m going to be done in three years, I\u2019m going to put them on there, and we\u2019ll ride it out.\u2019\u201d A decision on the display is currently pending.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The atheist group, the Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) has sent a letter to a Minnesota jail after allegedly receiving complaints from residents and taxpayers about the massive 2-story Ten Commandments display set outside the new jail. The display also contains quotes on faith from known politicians and Americans such as Ronald Reagan and Thomas…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":664,"featured_media":10379,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nAtheist Group Condemns Ten Commandments Monument Outside Minnesota Jail<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The display also contains quotes on faith from known politicians and Americans such as Ronald Reagan and Thomas Jefferson.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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