BOCA RATON, Fla. – Clergy leaders spoke out about a pentagram on display in the city’s holiday square.
The display is in Sanborn Square off Federal Highway, right next to a nativity scene.
Boca Raton’s mayor said free speech laws forced the city to allow the Satanic symbol on public property. But the mayor added that the display is hateful and she doesn’t support its message.
Clergy members called it an evil symbol.
“We also felt it was spiritually harmful to the well-being of our community. Our religious traditions: Christian, Jewish and Islamic, support values of justice peace,” said pastor Andrew Sherman with the Boca Raton Interfaith Clergy Association.
Someone spray-painted the pentagram overnight.
Preston Smith, the man who put up the pentagram, regularly pushes for a separation between religion and government.
He calls the vandalism to his sign a “hate crime.” He has filed a police report and together with the Freedom from Religion Foundation is offering a reward for info about the person who did the vandalism.
Smith released the following statement:
I have filed a police report with BRPD for this hate crime, which only proves that religion and government don't mix. The Freedom From Religion Foundation is offering a monetary reward for info leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrator(s). FFRF is also sending replacement banners via overnight delivery. Freethinkers have been targeted for thousands of years by religious folks, although counter-viewpoints are becoming more visible as this nation's demographics shift away from organized religion. We will not be silenced by the those who fear freedom of speech in America. We will not be persecuted by religious zealots intolerant of diverse viewpoints. We are not going away, but are instead ready to make this an annual tradition. The Constitution protects the minority from the tyranny of the majority. The mayor and city council should immediately take notice -- public parks must be free from all ancient myths and superstitions in order to preserve the well-being of the community at large.
Someone defaced the satanic pentagram installed at Boca Raton's holiday display over night. pic.twitter.com/Hdt51ItNXd
— Charlie Keegan (@CKeeganWPTV) December 7, 2016
The Boca Raton mayor and clergy assoc denounced the pentagram as hateful and bad for the city's spiritual well-being. But others embrace it pic.twitter.com/T5gRdsTaWi
— Charlie Keegan (@CKeeganWPTV) December 7, 2016
