Freedom from religion? Not this time

In our increasingly diverse society, we have learned — sometimes reluctantly — to accept that overt expressions of faith in our public schools can cause more problems than they solve.

But in their zeal to bleach schools of religious influences, reformers are confusing religious expression with historical representation.

Is it wrong to include religious images in, say, a performance by a marching band during a halftime show dedicated to remembering American GIs who fell in battle in the Normandy invasion during World War II?

An attorney for the Freedom from Religion Foundation thinks so. In a letter to the Mesa Public School District sent Oct. 22, attorney Sam Grover objected to the Mountain View High School band's performance, which he said promotes religion, which he called "a divisive force in public schools."

The use of "Latin crosses" as representations of the American cemeteries in Normandy, wrote Grover, "sends the message that the band either only seeks to honor Christian service members or that it believes that only Christians serve in the U.S. military."

In fact, the band also incorporated a Star of David. But why quibble? When your goal is to demand a condition not exactly explicit in the Constitution — freedom from religion — all religious symbols are pretty much the same.

Do the tender fellows down at the Freedom from Religion Foundation really see a threat to the American Experiment in high-school representations of the cemeteries of Normandy?

Maybe they do. So here is a history lesson for you, fellows: There is no more potent symbol of American commitment to freedom — including the freedom of and (yes) from religion — than the images of those Normandy cemeteries.

Purging overt religious expression from public schools is one thing. Purging religious imagery from our history for the sake of it is an affront, not just to those Mesa students, but to the GIs whose ultimate sacrifice they represent.