Oklahoma Attorney General Bans Christmas (update: or not)
Posted on December 20, 2007
Mark TapScott sends this update: Is That Eggnog on My Face? Maybe
Update: Maybe I won’t eat my words.
Update: Captain Ed emails to let me know I may have jumped the gun. If so, I will be happy to eat my words. Here is the status via Captain Ed.
So I called there myself, and spoke with Emily Lang, spokesperson for the AG. Ms Lang confirms that they are greeting callers with “Merry Christmas” as a means of refuting this story. AG Edmundson did not issue this order, she insists; they are checking with assistant AGs to see if the advisory ever existed at all. At any rate, the AG does not believe state workers should refrain from Christmas greetings.
Ms. Lang wants people to know that they have a Christmas tree in the office, and hopes everyone has a Merry Christmas.
And yes, I consider this sloppy work on my part. My apologies to readers and the Oklahoma AG’s office.
Mark Tapscott reports on the “Okie Napolean”.
I am not making this up (because I am from Oklahoma and this guy is an embarrassment).
Edmondson issued an advisory opinion to officials at Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford advising them that the word “Christmas” should not be spoken by any employee of the state school, not written in any official holiday decorations.
Matt Staver and Liberty Counsel issued the following statement on the Edmondson action:
“Southwestern Oklahoma State University (SWOSU), has issued a disturbing policy which requires all employees to refrain from using the word ‘Christmas’ in oral or written form. This directive was given by the university upon legal advice of the Oklahoma Attorney General, W.A. Drew Edmondson. Liberty Counsel sent a demand letter to SWOSU following a complaint from a university affiliate.
“John Misak, the Director of Human Resources, recently visited various university departments and employee groups and informed everyone that any decorations featuring the word ‘Christmas’ in any work or public areas of the university must be immediately removed. He also instructed everyone to discontinue the use of the term ‘Christmas’ in their speech while on the job. This censorship specifically includes exchanging greetings of ‘Merry Christmas’ among employees or with non-employees, whether initiated by a non-university employee or not. Christmas remains a legal holiday for state employees, including those at SWOSU. The directive does not include any other legal holidays such as Thanksgiving or New Year’s.
“The announcements made by Misak are in direct violation of the United States Constitution and other federal law. The First Amendment prohibits government from being hostile to religion. Selecting one legal holiday for negative treatment and special restrictions solely because it has religious aspects clearly demonstrates hostility toward religion. Moreover, the free speech rights of employees at the university are infringed when their speech is censored solely because of a religious viewpoint or perceived religious viewpoint. A public employer like SWOSU also violates the Civil Rights Act when it prohibits its employees from saying ‘Merry Christmas.’
“Liberty Counsel’s demand letter requests an immediate reversal of the university’s unconstitutional policy. Liberty Counsel’s Friend or Foe Christmas Campaign educates and, if necessary, litigates to insure that Christmas is not censored.
Mathew D. Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel and Dean of Liberty University School of Law, commented: ‘Of all places, a public university should foster free expression. How can public university officials honestly believe that the state can prohibit its employees from saying ‘Merry Christmas?’ After all, Christmas is a state and federal legal holiday.’”
You can reach Mr. Edmonson via telephone at: 405-521-3921. Make sure to wish him a Merry Christmas while you are on the phone. Make sure to let him know just how ridiculous his politically correct scrooge crap is….politely if possible.
» Filed Under 1st Amendment, ACLU, Christmas, Church And State, News
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6 Responses to “Oklahoma Attorney General Bans Christmas (update: or not)”
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Just got off the phone with Christy in Mr. Edmonson’s office. She said this came out about twenty minutes ago and they are already working on a response, and that it is absolutely UNTRUE. To tell the truth, it sounded very much like a prepared response, but she did wish me a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
By the way, I am moving to Altus, OK in March to be with my 2Lt, so this is kinda important to me and I vote.
I understand that the University’s website makes mention of Christmas all over the place. These false stories are becoming a big negative for Conservatives.
Not much confirmation out there. Tapscott now cites “confirmation” in the form of one employee who says that “her boss” told “her group” not to use the word ‘Christmas.’ There’s nothing tying this to the AG, nor is there any confirmation that SWOSU’s HR director–whose name Liberty Counsel misstated in their news release–made trips to multiple departments to deliver this information. Liberty’s page doesn’t even include a copy of their “demand letter.”
Ed Morrissey, over at Captain’s Quarters, made some phone calls to attempt confirmation; he’s now apologizing to the AG for reprinting theis story at all…
This looks like a phony story from the Liberty Council to hype fund raising. Just like O’Reilly uses the “war” on Christmas to hype his ratings.
Maybe you’ll check your facts first BEFORE showing your bigotry. That way your rhetorical lynchings will look more “legitimate.”
The website was NEVER changed from Merry Christmas to Happy Holidays. Just another form of poor reporting. It has been Happy Holidays from when the template was first created in 2004. This story proves how The Media is the worst form of propaganda out there.