Citizen Staff/Aaron Martin
A crowd of about three dozen people gather along the street outside the Dodge County Administration Building before a county board meeting Tuesday night. The crowd was demonstrating support for prayer at county meetings in response to allegations from the Freedom From Religion Foundation that county meetings have been unconstitutionally opened with Christian prayers.
JUNEAU - At least three dozen citizens, many holding signs, gathered for Tuesday night's meeting of the Dodge County Board of Supervisors to support prayer at county board meetings.
The peaceful protest was incited by allegations from the Freedom From Religion Foundation that a number of Dodge County Board meetings were unconstitutionally opened with prayers that evoke Jesus Christ. The FFRF implored the county board to end its "prayerful practice" immediately.
Tuesday's meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence. The board's policy regarding invocations was not on the agenda, and action regarding the county's future invocation policy has not yet been taken.
Prayer supporters who gathered Tuesday from different corners of Dodge County carried a singular message, summarized by Vicki Baum of Burnett when she said, "Faith does not end at the steps of the county building."
"We are hoping to keep prayer in our county meetings so our county leaders can make the right decisions. So that they're going with the spirit of God, rather than man's spirit," said Raymond Olson of Juneau.
Seventeen-year-old Samantha Stellmacher of Mayville said she was there because, "My generation needs to a have a voice, also. People and the county board need to know we care."
Stellmacher said she didn't understand the basis of the FFRF's allegations because, "Our country was founded on (Christianity). It's not freedom from religion, it's freedom of religion. It shouldn't be taken away from anyone."
However, Rebecca Kratz, an attorney representing the FFRF, stated in a letter to chairman Russell Kottke that county board meetings in February, April, August and November of 2008 opened with unconstitutional prayers delivered by Supervisor Randy Grebel.
"The prayers impermissibly advance Christianity and lead a reasonable observer to believe that the board is endorsing not only religion over nonreligion but also Christiantiy over other faiths . . . which turns non-believers and non-Christians into political outsiders of their own community and government," Kratz stated in the letter.
Kratz also cited a number of U.S. Supreme Court and federal court decisions that have found sectarian and denominational prayers to be unconstitutional in public meetings.
The FFRF letter followed a complaint from Supervisor Dean Fuller, who represents Waupun's first and third wards. Fuller said he told county administrator Jim Mielke and corporation counsel John Corey he would file the complaint if the January county board meeting opened with a Christian prayer.
It was.
At a Feb. 2 executive committee meeting Corey said that, "Legislative prayer is allowed, but there are some parameters that have to be observed — quite a few of them actually. Essentially, it should be done in such a fashion that no one is promoting or encouraging one religion, or discouraging another," Corey said.
Corey added that developing a written policy regarding invocations would be prudent moving forward.
Kottke said Tuesday county board rules do not include any provisions for invocations, and such a policy would need to be created through a resolution.