Public Forum On World Religions

POTEAU — The more than 200 residents who came out for the unveiling of the Ten Commandments monument at a local bank applauded when organizers said it was only the first of many to come.

Officials from Community State Bank and some who organized the campaign said the lawn is only a resting place for the monument as they await a possible Supreme Court decision on a similar one in Stigler in nearby Haskell County.

"I can assure you that when the time comes, if the Supreme Court rules in our favor, we will have a new one down at the county courthouse just like it,” said former Mayor Don Barnes, who started the effort last year.

Le Flore County commissioners in April 2009 voted unanimously to erect a monument on the courthouse grounds. They abandoned that effort in June after the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver ruled a monument in Haskell County violated the constitution’s establishment clause because it promoted a religion. Haskell County is appealing.

Barnes said he hated the decision, but didn’t want the county to be sued.

Charlie Horsley, commander of Disabled Veterans of America Chapter 63 has crusaded to find a home for the markers.

"It’s the right thing to do,” he told the crowd.

Community State Bank President Larry Spradley said bank officials decided in November to donate an area on their north lawn for the monument.

"These are values we all believe in,” he said. "If someday the county wants it, well, then we can give it to them.”

The granite tablets face north toward U.S. 59 that runs through the town. The 7-foot by 5-foot granite monument is surrounded by lights.

Horsley said he was overjoyed by the bank’s donation.

"It’s like when I found out my wife was pregnant with our firstborn son,” he said.

Horsley said he doesn’t believe the monument promotes one religion. The Preamble to the state Constitution, the Pledge of Allegiance and a dedication are etched on the monument’s back side. The dedication states the commandments are "suggestions to live by” for persons of all religions and beliefs.

"I don’t want to argue about it anymore,” Horsely said. "But we are not through yet by any means.”

Horsley said about $16,000 has been donated to a fund held by the Chamber of Commerce and there are plans to erect similar markers in towns across the county.

"Wouldn’t it be nice to be known all over the state or country as the Ten Commandments capital,” Barnes said to the crowd.

Vickie Noon, 47, of Poteau, said she would prefer the monument be at the courthouse, but the message of the commandments is most important.

"We did it anyway,” she said of efforts to stop the monument from going up.

Ron Franks, a Poteau resident and retired minister, attended the dedication dressed as Moses with stone tablets. Franks, 65, said he came out to the event to make a statement.

"They (the Ten Commandments) have been a part of our civilization since the time of Moses,” he said. "People who oppose them have their right to freedom of speech and we have ours.”

During the 30-minute ceremony that included local high school students singing The Star-Spangled Banner, local residents held up signs stating "We did it anyway,” and "God bless America.”

 

Micheal Salem, a Norman attorney who sued Haskell County officials in 2005 on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union and a county resident, said county officials there have petitioned the Supreme Court to hear the case.

Salem said he is not sure how long it will be until that decision is known, but oral arguments would likely not be heard before the summer if the Supreme Court accepts the case.

He said he agreed with the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that the monument endorsed a religion.

The constitutionality of monuments is decided by judges on a case by case basis, he said.

"It’s a permanent monument and it speaks every day as a nature of its permanency,” Salem said.

Salem said some assume that striking down the monuments is an attack on religious beliefs.

"In fact, it is exactly the opposite,” he said. "It’s an attack on the government’s endorsement of religion.”

When political speech and religious speech are entangled, the argument can never end, he said.

The monument is still standing outside the Haskell County Courthouse as officials wait to learn whether the Supreme Court will take the case.

If they lose, the county is liable for the legal fees and court costs.

Ten Commandments displays are also on courthouse grounds in Marshall and Atoka counties.

Like the Poteau marker, a similar monument is on private property near the courthouse in Coal County.