Florida's Capitol has displayed a Pabst Blue Ribbon Festivus pole, atheist banners and even a tribute to the Flying Spaghetti Monster. But a display showing an angel falling into flames with the message "Happy Holidays from the Satanic Temple" was too much for one woman, police said.
The woman damaged the Satanic display Tuesday, a day after an atheist group put it up as a counter to a nativity scene that was set up by a Christian group. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement didn't immediately release her name or the charges against her.
"The angel's dead," said John Porgal, the regional director of American Atheists, when he arrived at the Capitol to see the figurine lying alone on a table. "We've been tolerant of their display. We didn't like it, but we tolerated it. You see what they did to our display."
Atheist groups last year began taking advantage of the Capitol's free speech zone after a Christian group installed a manager scene showing the birth of Jesus. The display last year included a Festivus pole in tribute to a holiday created on "Seinfeld" that satirizes the commercialism of Christmas and a display by the Church of The Flying Spaghetti Monster, which mocks beliefs that a god created the universe by instead arguing all that exists was created by a plate of pasta and meatballs.
The Satanic Temple display was rejected as "grossly offensive" last year, but this year, the state Department of Management Services gave its approval following threats of legal action from the Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
It was put up the same day the nativity scene was taken down. The Satanic Temple is a satirical group that opposes religious displays and activity on government property and public schools. The same group asked to distribute Satanic coloring books in Orlando high schools after a Christian group was allowed to distribute Bibles. The school district is now reconsidering its policy.
Porgal said he plans to leave the display in its damaged state "as a sign of what the religious rights' idea of tolerance is."
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Pam Olsen, who organized the manger display, said she doesn't approve of the attack.
"I'm actually very sad that she felt motivated to do that," Olsen said. "I do not like the display. I think it's rude and it's sad that he put it up to protest the nativity that means so much to millions of people, however I don't think anyone should ever vandalize anything. Free speech is free speech whether we like it or not."
