Judge Rules 9/11 Museum Can Include WTC Cross
A New York judge has thrown out a lawsuit filed by a group of atheists, ruling that a pair of World Trade Center beams in the shape of a cross can be included in a memorial museum of the 9/11 terror attacks.
American Atheists filed the lawsuit in July, arguing that the “government enshrinement of the cross” was an impermissible mingling of church and state.
The World Trade Center cross, two intersecting steel beams that held up when the twin towers collapsed on September 11, 2001, is seen as iconic to some.
In 2011: Cross moved to permanent 9/11 Memorial site
The cross was moved in July from near a church to its new home at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, located at ground zero in Lower Manhattan. Father Brian Jordan, a Franciscan priest who ministered to workers clearing the area after the attacks, led a ceremonial blessing of the cross.