Centennial Bank Stadium, formerly known as Liberty Bank Stadium, home of Arkansas State football. Photo/Wikimedia
[dropcap]L [/dropcap]iberty Institute sent a demand letter to Arkansas State University officials on behalf of its client – an Arkansas State University football player who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation by the university – for violating his team’s free speech rights by censoring a student memorial helmet sticker.
University officials altered the stickers by physically trimming them into a straight line to remove the vertical line that once formed a cross, in an effort to get rid of any of and all religious symbols from public view.
“We are about to find out if Arkansas State University will follow the law or simply use the excuse of the FFRF letter to purposefully engage in constitutional religious viewpoint discrimination,” said Hiram Sasser, Liberty Institute Litigation Director. “The players put themselves through a physical, emotional, and mental ground throughout the year to stand up and represent everything that is good about Arkansas State University, its fans, its alumni and the surrounding community. Now we will find out if Arkansas State University will stand up for them and the Constitution of the United States.”
The letter – which can be read here – demands that school officials immediately stop all censorship in regards to religious views and acknowledge in writing the rights its students have to engage in free speech. If the school does not comply by September 17th, Liberty Institute will pursue further legal action.
