WALHALLA, S.C. — Under pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union, Oconee County officials voted today to no longer open meetings with public prayer, opting instead for a “moment of silence.”
“Despite what the ACLU would like people to believe, the First Amendment protects more than silence,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Mike Johnson. “While we are sorely disappointed that prayer has been silenced, this just marks the start of a wider battle with the ACLU and their attempt to destroy prayer in the public square. Apparently, the ACLU plus the First Amendment equals silence.”
“The county council did not have to decide this way to stay in compliance with the law, but that won’t stop the ACLU from using this decision to force other municipalities into compliance with its agenda,” Johnson added. “You can be assured that ADF and its allies will show up and offer assistance to any municipality that finds itself to be the target of the ACLU’s ongoing campaign of fear, intimidation, and disinformation.”
The ACLU contacted Oconee County officials, as it has in numerous other towns and counties, and demanded that they immediately halt the practice of opening each meeting with an invocation of the giver’s choosing. The Oconee Ministerial Association contacted Johnson for assistance, and he provided the council with the policy that would allow the prayers to continue in compliance with the U.S. Constitution. Today, the council voted in favor of a moment of silence, even though ADF is confident that the proposed policy would pass constitutional muster.
A copy of the policy that was proposed to county officials can be read at
www.telladf.org/UserDocs/OconeePolicy.pdf.
“The ACLU may think it has won this battle, but it has really only awakened people of faith across the nation to its agenda,” said Johnson. “The ACLU’s attack on prayer reduces America’s First Amendment to nothing more than silence. I am confident that it will not be as successful in other places where it tries to force people of faith to be silent.”
ADF-allied attorney Joseph Martins of the National Legal Foundation and Dr. Oran Smith, president and executive director of the Palmetto Family Council, provided assistance to Johnson.
ADF is a legal alliance defending the right to hear and speak the Truth through strategy, training, funding, and litigation.
www.telladf.org www.acluvsamerica.com