Group asks Las Cruces, N.M., to stop using cross logo
By The Associated Press
02.19.03
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — The city of Las Cruces has been asked to stop using its logo, which a group says is an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.
The logo has three crosses inside a symbol of the sun. Cruces is Spanish for “crosses.”
The southern New Mexico chapter of the Americans United for Separation of Church and State contends the logo violates the separation of church and state under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Jesse Chavez, chapter president, said that “the present logo is divisive, symbolizing an affiliation with a particular religion, that excludes those not so affiliated.”
“There is no justification for the city to adopt a logo that has this effect on its residents,” he said in a letter earlier this month to Jim Ericson, city manager.
Ericson said in a letter to Chavez that the city believes the logo “clearly reflects the city’s historical and cultural heritage and in no way promotes any specific religion or religion in general.”
Fermin Rubio, city attorney, said the logo is constitutional.
“Based on the history of the name Las Cruces and the context in which the crosses are used in the city’s logo, the establishment clause of the United States Constitution is not violated,” Rubio said in a letter to Chavez.
“The inclusion of three crosses in the center of the sun does not promote religion,” Rubio said.
“The three crosses are used to identify the name of the city and are used in the context of the [origins] of the name of the city, the Place of the Crosses,” he said.
The Las Cruces City Council met in closed session Feb. 3 to discuss the matter as threatened litigation.
Harry Connelly, deputy city attorney, said he is not aware of any formal legal action that has been taken, but city attorneys perceived Chavez’s letter as a threat of litigation.
Bob Johnson, executive director of the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government, said on Feb. 13 he would write a letter to city officials, telling them the closed session might have violated the New Mexico Open Meetings Act.
“If you get a letter from lawyer saying we’re going to sue you, that’s a threat,” he said. “Or if a lawsuit has been filed, then of course, that’s pending litigation.”