New York
FFRF kept up the fight for state/church separation in Poughkeepsie when religious material was on display on city property.
A Poughkeepsie resident contacted FFRF to report that on at least one occasion in the fall of 2023, the Info Desk for the City Courts was used to display religious literature promoting Christianity. FFRF’s complainant noted that they felt their right to be free from religious coercion in government spaces was being trampled on by the display.
“As a governmental entity, you are tasked with representing the interests of all of your constituents, regardless of what their religious beliefs may or may not be,” FFRF Equal Justice Works Fellow Kat D. Grant wrote in February 2024.
Despite FFRF not receiving a response from the city, it continued to write to the city until finally, in late 2024, Poughkeepsie Mayor Yvonne D. Flowers emailed back.
“In February 2024, I noticed there were several religious material items on a table near city court and they were removed,” Flowers wrote. “The court officers and city staff were advised not to allow any religious material to be displayed in the City Hall lobby or any place in City Hall.”
