Texans are an independent bunch and do not take kindly to people from other states trying to tell them what to do. The Freedom From Religion Foundation wants Hondo, Texas, to remove its distinctly recognizable signs that say “Welcome. This is God’s Country. Please Don’t Drive Through it Like Hell.”
The mayor of Hondo, Jim Danner, was reported by The Gospel Herald Society to respond, “There’s no way in hell we’re going to take those signs down.”
The signs have been a fixture in the community of around 9,000 since 1932.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation wrote city officials citing the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment and said the signs send “the message that nonbelievers are not welcome in the city.” The organization also said that they “convey government preference for religion over non-religion.”
The Yankee foundation has stuck its nose in Texas’ business before.
As reported by Breitbart Texas in late December, Texas Governor Greg Abbott had to send a letter demanding the removal of a tasteless “nativity” placed in the Lone Star State’s Capitol building by the Foundation. The exhibit, located in the basement of the state’s Capitol, had the bill of rights in a manager instead of a baby Jesus. It also has three founding fathers and the Statue of Liberty “worshiping one of America’s founding documents as a replacement for Jesus Christ,” wrote the Texas Governor.
Abbott continues in his letter, “Christians and Christianity. The Biblical scene of the newly born Jesus Christ lying in a manger in Bethlehem lies at the very heart of the Christian faith. Subjecting an image held sacred by millions of Texans to the Foundation’s tasteless sarcasm does nothing to promote morals and the general welfare.” The Texas governor added that “The Foundation’s spiteful message is intentionally designed to belittle and offend, which undermines rather than promotes any public purpose a display promoting the bill of rights might otherwise have had.”
Lana Shadwick is a writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served as a prosecutor and associate judge in Texas. Follow her on Twitter @LanaShadwick2.