Gov’t bans ‘Christ’ in Christian celebration

The transit authority said it wouldn’t run the advertisement because it bans religious-themed advertising. Transit attorneys claimed there are two aspects of Christmas: one secular and the other religious.

“Advertisements involving secular symbols of the holiday – reindeer, the Yule log, the Christmas trees … address the secular half of Christmas,” the transit authority explained. “Overtly religious ads, like those featuring religious imagery like a scene of shepherds and the Star of Bethlehem … address the religious half of Christmas.

“Here, WMATA has simply prohibited advertisements related to the subject of the religious half of Christmas, but not the secular half,” it continued. “That is not viewpoint discrimination.”