Huge win for football players - ASU backs off 'cross' ban
In a huge win for religious freedom, Arkansas State University conceded it made a grievous constitutional error in ordering football team players to remove a memorial sticker from their helmets.
As reported in an AFA Action Alert earlier this week, ASU authorities told players to remove the sticker because it contained a cross, flanked by the initials of two team members tragically killed in the past year.
Ov er 25,000 AFA supporter emails flooded the office of the president and legal counsel, urging them to abide by the constitution of the United States and stop its practice of religious discrimination.
Knowing the school was wrong, one (unnamed) player obtained the services of Liberty Institute, which fired off a letter to President Charles Welch, giving him just three days to correct the injustice or face potential legal action.
With that much backlash, it didn’t take long for ASU leaders to see the error of their ways.
The school has now issued a statement, acknowledging the right of ASU’s football players to engage in private speech, including speech in the form of a cross-shaped helmet sticker memorial to their former colleagues.
I want to thank you for standing with your AFA. Together, and with God’s help, we are making a difference. Just ask any member of the ASU football team!
