Christmas Returns to Auburn

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Auburn,
AL – After two open forums held over an eleven-month period, the Auburn
University Student Government Association (SGA) announced that the
former “Holiday” tree lighting event will now be called “Holiday Celebration
featuring the Lighting of the Christmas Tree.”

The event
had been called the Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony since its inception
in 2000. The former president of College Republicans, Laura Steele,
started a petition to rename the event shortly before last year’s
tree lighting ceremony. Liberty Counsel worked closely with Ms. Steele
to support the effort she spearheaded. According to the Associated
Press, over 20,000 e-mails were received over the issue. Thanks to
the efforts and persistence of Laura Steele and other student leaders,
the stir caused the SGA to review the event, as well as the entire
program. "I am so happy that the SGA has decided to call the
tree what it is, a Christmas Tree,” said Laura. “They
have the support and thanks of the thousands of students, alumni and
fans that joined the effort to bring the name Christmas back to this
wonderful University. We are all very happy to have this resolved
and thrilled that we can continue to positively promote Christmas
and the real meaning of the season this year at Auburn.”

Wes Bonds,
spokesman for the celebration committee, said the SGA wanted to make
sure the tree was called a Christmas tree. “We wanted to find
a name that included everything going on,” Bonds said. George
Stegall, president of SGA, said he believes the new name is more accurate.
“There’s no holiday tree. Something had to be done about
calling a Christmas tree a holiday tree,” he said. “I
think it will definitely be well received by Auburn University and
the Auburn community,” he said. The new celebration will include
the lighting of the Christmas tree, as well as the lighting of a peace
candle and possibly the lighting of a menorah.

There has been a disturbing trend toward censorship of Christmas
celebrations, but people all across America are fighting back to help
save Christmas. Everyone knows that a green, pointed, prickly tree
we decorate in December is a Christmas tree. Renaming a Christmas
tree to a “Holiday tree” is hypocritical political correctness
run amok. Christmas IS constitutional. The Friend or Foe Christmas
Campaign is stirring millions of Americans to help save Christmas
and to preserve our religious freedom before it is lost forever.

Mathew Staver is the Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel, a nationwide, public interest civil liberties law firm.

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