Brazil's Supreme Court allows crucifixes, religious symbols in public buildings
Brazil's Supreme Federal Court has unanimously ruled to allow the presence of religious symbols in public buildings, affirming that their display does not conflict with the country's secular principles.
All 11 justices held that symbols such as crucifixes are permissible as reflections of Brazil's cultural history and tradition, reported the legal advocacy group ADF International, which filed a legal brief cited in the court's reasoning.
"The presence of religious symbols in public buildings — whether at the federal, state, district, or municipal level — when intended to reflect the cultural tradition of Brazilian society, does not violate the principles of non-discrimination, state secularism, or impartiality," wrote Justice Cristiano Zanin in the ruling, according to an English translation provided by The Brazilian Report.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
Justice Alexandre de Moraes said symbols in public spaces are acceptable, provided they remain consistent with the intention of manifesting the historical, cultural and traditional aspects of the majority-Catholic Brazilian society.
The case dates back to 2009, and the ruling comes in response to a complaint filed by a Brazilian citizen who argued that the presence of religious symbols in public spaces caused him emotional distress.
The Federal Public Ministry, Brazil's Public Prosecutor's Office, had supported the plaintiff by seeking the removal of all religious symbols from federal and state buildings, claiming that their presence violated the principle of non-discrimination and compromised the religious freedom of all Brazilian citizens.
However, the lawsuit was dismissed by both the trial and appeals courts and a subsequent appeal was also rejected. Finally, the case reached the Supreme Court, resulting in this week's decision that rejected the FPM's arguments.
The court's ruling is binding for all federal and state public entities in Brazil, ADF International said.
Tomás Henríquez, director of advocacy for Latin America & the Caribbean for ADF International, called the ruling "a resounding victory for religious freedom in Brazil." Henríquez contends that the argument of "hurt emotions" was insufficient to justify banning religious symbols.
ADF International's brief stressed that the principle of state neutrality should not equate to hostility towards Christianity and highlighted the relevance of recognizing the historical, cultural and social significance of Christianity in Brazil.
The case drew parallels to a prominent European case.
In 2011, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights made a similar ruling in Lautsi v. Italy, where it upheld Italy's right to display crosses in classrooms, concluding that such symbols were not incompatible with the Convention's principles.
ADF International also participated in that European case, providing legal expertise on behalf of European Parliament members.
In the United States, Louisiana was blocked by a lower court ruling that prohibited the enforcement of a new law passed this year requiring the placement of Ten Commandments displays in public school classrooms. Last week, a federal appeals court limited the scope of that ruling, requiring schools in which there is no challenge to the mandate to place Ten Commandments next year.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in 1980 that Kentucky could not mandate that public schools display the Ten Commandments because it violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
