Michigan Town Votes to Remove Cross Following Atheist Pressure

A tense battle regarding a 50-year-old hilltop cross came to an end in Grand Haven, Michigan this week when the city council voted to remove the cross.

The 48-foot tall cross has sat atop Dewey Hill in Grand Haven for the past 50 years for about 15 days each year around the Easter season and some days in the summer. The cross recently started receiving criticism from local atheists who argued that because the cross stood on city property and was maintained by the city, it was a violation of the separation of church and state.

The Grand Haven City Council voted this week 3-2 to turn the cross into a giant anchor so as to avoid any potential lawsuits with the city.

Some living in Grand Haven, which only has a population of about 11,000, have expressed their disappointment in the city council's decision.

"One thing I want to make clear: Grand Haven is not divided. It is very united in support of the cross," Grand Haven resident Brandon Hall told the Free Beacon. "All my atheist friends hate what is going on here."

"It's very surprising that one guy can come from out of state and start all this. It is very shocking and disappointing," Hall continued, adding that he believes city council caved to a "bully."

Others have expressed excitement that the cross will be taken down after years of remaining on the hill.

"I was offended in the sense that it was government speech, and had it been a cross on private land or a church's parking lot I probably wouldn't have thought twice about it. But because it was municipal, it changes everything," local resident Brian Plescher told WOODTV.

"On this case, it's whether or not the cross is constitutional or not and I think the city knew all along that it wasn't."