Deerfield Beach, FL — A local atheist decided that if you can’t beat them, join them. He got permission from the city to install an eight foot tall Festivus pole made up of Pabst Blue Ribbon cans next to a Nativity scene and a Menorah.
Festivus is the secular “holiday” made famous in a 1997 Seinfeld episode in which Frank Costanza (Jerry Stiller) declared “Festivus for the rest of us.” Festivus Day is apparently celebrated on December 23.
The Sun Sentinel reports that blogger Chaz Stevens has been protesting against religious symbols on public property for some time because in his view it violated Constitutional church-state separation. But he decided to change his approach this season in the South Florida city:
“Stevens said he has been trying unsuccessfully for five years to get the city to take down the Nativity scene. So this year he asked for space to express his own unreligious beliefs.
” ‘Think of how many people have died over the years to give us our freedoms,’ Stevens said. ‘So I’ve got to push back a little.’ “
Stevens’ Festivus pole is made up of 23 beer cans and is situated at the corner of Federal Highway and Hillsboro Boulevard in Deerfield Beach.
According to The Daily Caller , Festivus was not just a bit for a sitcom but was actually celebrated by the O’Keefe family:
“Festivus was originally conceived by the late Reader’s Digest editor Dan O’Keefe in 1966. O’Keefe’s son Daniel later fictionalized his family’s tradition while writing for the final season of Seinfeld .”
Here is the Festivus pole erected by Chaz Stevens:
[Image credit: MyActsofSedition.com ]
Are you offended by Chaz Stevens exercising his freedom of speech with the Festivus pole? In the alternative, is it appropriate for religious symbols to be on city property?
Watch Chaz Stevens build his Festivus pole:
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