Petition Launched Against NYC Officials for Banning ‘God Bless the USA’ from Kindergarten Event

WASHINGTON, June 12, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – A conservative legal group is demanding that a New York City school officials and Mayor Michael Bloomberg reverse a decision banning “God Bless the USA” at a kindergarten graduation ceremony, because they deemed it potentially offensive to other cultures.

The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) today sent a letter to New York school officials – including Mayor Michael Bloomberg – urging that the ban be reversed.

Principal Greta Hawkins of P.S. 90 in Brooklyn reportedly pulled Lee Greenwood’s patriotic ballad from the June 20 graduation program saying the song is not “age appropriate” and could end up “offending other cultures.”

The ban caught national attention after the New York Post reported that while the patriotic song was banned, the children would be hearing Justin Bieber’s teenage romance ballad “Baby.” In a press conference Monday, Bloomberg announced that the Bieber song would also be nixed from the program.

The decision drew outrage from Congressman Michael Grimm (R-NY), who condemned the “anti-American message,” and from singer Greenwood himself. “I’ve been singing my song for 30 years. I sing it everywhere — Carnegie Hall, grammar schools,” Greenwood told The Post. “To say it’s inappropriate for a 5-year-old is absolutely ridiculous.”

Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ, called the school’s decision against the patriotic song “not only ridiculous, but offensive to the many parents and students in the school who want to express their patriotism at the graduation ceremony.”

“In less than one day, we have heard from many concerned Americans – including New York City residents – who find this decision deeply troubling. It appears this principal doesn’t mind punishing patriotism for the sake of political correctness.”

The ACLJ letter, posted here, argues that “a student performance of ‘God Bless the USA’ at a graduation ceremony is no different than a teacher leading students in a voluntarily recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. Both are secular activities permissible in public schools, and both serve the important purpose of furthering the principles of patriotism and self-sacrifice in a group setting.”

The letter was sent today to Superintendent Isabel DiMola of CEC District 21, as well as Mayor Bloomberg, Chancellor Dennis Walcott, and Principal Hawkins.

Within hours, more than one thousand people have expressed their support for “God Bless the USA” at a petition launched on the ACLJ website.

ACLJ Amends Lawsuit Over Ground Zero Mosque

A lawsuit seeking to stop the development of the proposed Islamic center near New York City’s Ground Zero has been amended to include the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB), the owners of the proposed development and project, and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

The new court documents, submitted Wednesday, specifically allege that the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) “acted in an arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable manner” when it denied landmark status to the building that currently stands where the proposed Islamic center seeks to be.

The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), which submitted the original and latest suits, further claims in the amended suit that the LPC “allowed the intended use of the Building and political considerations, including pressures from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who appoints the LPC commissioners, to taint what should be a deliberative, unbiased and apolitical process.”

“This was accomplished in violation of procedural safeguards set forth in the New York City Charter and Administrative Code of the City of New York,” the legal group stated.

At the heart of the complaint is the $100 million Islamic mosque and cultural center that supporters say will promote integration and tolerance and improve Muslim-West relations.

While Muslim leaders behind the project say the Islamic center “will provide a place where individuals, regardless of their backgrounds, will find a center of learning, art and culture,” opponents of the the proposed “mega mosque” argue that an Islamic center just two blocks away from Ground Zero is insensitive and insulting to the families of the 9/11 victims. Furthermore, critics say the project would mark a victory for those who sought to terrorize the American people.

In an effort to stop the development of of the Islamic center, ACLJ earlier this year urged New York City officials to grant landmark status to the current building on the site – a former Burlington Coat factory on Park Place that housed a piece from one of the hijacked airplanes that crashed into it. Landmark status would have made it difficult for the leaders of Park51 to raze the building and build its center there.

The city commission voted 9-0 in early August, however, to deny landmark status to the building, effectively saying the building does not have a special character or special historical or aesthetic interest or value as part of the development, heritage or cultural characteristics of New York City, New York State or the nation.

ACLJ announced shortly afterward that it was preparing legal action to challenge the vote.

“It has been clear from the beginning that the city has engaged in a rush to push this project through-ignoring proper procedure and ignoring a growing number of New Yorkers and other Americans who don’t believe this site is the place to build a mosque,” said ACLJ Chief Counsel Jay Sekulow.

Now, two months later, ACLJ is accusing Bloomberg of remaining silent and ignoring requests for “critical information” about his involvement in the approval process for the Islamic center.

“By refusing to provide pertinent information about his involvement in the project, the Mayor is ignoring the very laws that he has sworn to uphold,” noted Sekulow.

Such refusal, ACLJ adds, raises questions about whether the mayor used political pressure to get the city agency to approve the project.

“The people of New York City deserve to know what role the mayor played – and what political pressures were employed to jam this project through,” said Sekulow. “We will continue to aggressively pursue our legal challenge to the mosque and remain hopeful this mosque will never be built on this site.”

Presently, the ACLJ is representing Tim Brown, a firefighter and first responder who survived the Twin Towers’ collapse in 2002 and lost nearly 100 friends. The ACLJ filed its initial lawsuit with the Supreme Court of the State of New York in August. It is seeking to have the LPC’s decision overturned.

Additionally, the ACLJ is requesting an injunction against the DOB from issuing any building permits and disclosure of all relevant information from public officials and agencies named in the suit through the Freedom of Information Law

Ultimately, ACLJ seeks to stop the development of the proposed “ground zero mosque,” the site for which is actually two blocks away from Ground Zero.

Courtesy of http://www.christianpost.com/article/20101014/aclj-amends-lawsuit-to-stop-ground-zero-mosque/