# Is a tiny Cross that offensive
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-tiny-cross-that-offensive/248365
**Category:** Great Debates
**Created:** [June 3, 2004, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-tiny-cross-that-offensive/248365 "2004-06-03T00:51:36Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 4
### Author:  [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)
#### Post date: [June 4, 2004, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-tiny-cross-that-offensive/248365/61 "2004-06-04T08:03:49Z")
> [@Zagadka](#):
>
> Here is an interesting interpretation: The swastika. The swastika has been used for thousands of years, from India to natives of the Americas. Once adopted by the Nazi cause, does this mean that the native Americans and Indians and everyone else can’t use the swastika symbol?
The city hall in Buffalo, New York has a number of swastikas among the interior decorations. (It’s an [Art Deco-style skyscraper](http://www.ci.buffalo.ny.us/document_15_4.html) from about 1930, and there’s [a _lot_ of interior detail](http://ah.bfn.org/a/niagSq/65/city.html).) They were thinking Indians (Native Americans) rather than Aryans, of course; the building has a major Indian motif.
> [@I Love Me](#):
>
> I read recently about the ACLU defending some religious group, I believe a Christian one, for their right to worship or protest or something… DAMN… I wish I could remember where I saw that. It was on the Web within the last week. Any one notice something like that? A little help?
Looks like the ACLU of Virginia just [successfully challenged a policy prohibiting public baptisms in municipal parks](http://www.aclu.org/ReligiousLiberty/ReligiousLiberty.cfm?ID=15897&c=141). And the ACLU of Michigan [recently intervened on behalf of a student at a public school who was denied the right to include a Bible verse in her personal yearbook entry](http://www.aclu.org/StudentsRights/StudentsRights.cfm?ID=15680&c=159).
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### Author:  [@BrianJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrianJ)
#### Post date: [June 4, 2004, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-tiny-cross-that-offensive/248365/62 "2004-06-04T14:30:13Z")
Well, I’m Canadian, so am not subject to the ACLU decisions. However I’ll post my opinion anyway 🙂
Up here in Canada we have similar PC people wanting to remove all references to Christmas, ie trees etc. A couple of years ago advertisers all decided to use words like ‘holiday shopping’ instead of Christmas shopping.
The response in newspaper editorials was very one sided. Both Christians and non Christians wrote in to say how they disagreed with removing Christian symbols and references. Non Christians wrote in to say they were mystified about the concern that they would be offended. After all, they chose to live in a country that was founded by Christians and where the biggest religion was Christianity.
I’m an agnostic/atheist. The closest my family gets to celebrating Christmas is the tree and presents. It is not a religious holiday to us. However it is still Christmas!
Non-Christians get along just fine along side Christian symbols and references. Religion should be kept out of schools and governments should not push one religion over another. Symbols reflecting the history of an area should be just fine.
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