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Group explains complaint to take cross off Buhler city seal

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By Sia Nyorkor

KWCH 12 Eyewitness News

10:43 PM CST, November 27, 2012

(WICHITA, Kan.)

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The decision is final. The 23-year-old seal in a small Kansas town will be coming down.

A complaint came to city leaders about the cross on the seal.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation sent a letter to them saying the sign was unconstitutional.

The city chose to re-design the seal after getting legal advice.

"The first amendment is very clear that church and state need to be separate, that's what is interpreted, the courts all agree on this, this is not a controversial issue," says Andrew Seidel, an attorney with Freedom From Religion Foundation.

But for some in the town of 1300 people, it is controversial.

"It's really become quite passionate," says Phil Neufeldt, a Buhler resident.

After the Freedom From Religion Foundation sent a letter to the city of Buhler stating it was violating the constitution, many wondered about the group.

Seidel says it's a national organization funded by more than 19,000 members. 

So far this year, it's received about 3,000 complaints from all over the US. It only took one complaint from Buhler for it to take action.

"They came to us and said, hey, I'm wondering if this is a violation of the constitution, I feel that my government is endorsing Christianity. If you look at the seal, it quite obviously is," says Seidel.

Rather than waste taxpayer money fighting it in court, Mayor
Daniel Friesen decided to re-design the city seal, without the cross.

"This is kind of one of those things where the community is a little frustrated that outside interests can have an effect on what I think is fair to say the majority of the community feels is a very representative seal for the community," says the Mayor.

But the Freedom From Religion Foundation says it's just trying to protect everyone's rights.

"It's about upholding the first amendment of the constitution and making sure this government we have is for all the people, not just we, the some religious people and it's for everybody."

The city of Buhler will hold a contest for a new seal design.  It hopes to have a winner by the end of January.

Freedom From Religion Foundation talks Buhler complaint