Post Office Banner Removal Sparks Reaction in Pittsburg

PITTSBURG, Kan. (AP) – Residents in a southeast Kansas community are responding to a post office’s removal of a “God Bless America” banner by putting up similar banners.

The Pittsburg post office took the banner down Wednesday after hearing complaints about it from the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation. The organization said hanging the banner at the post office violated the principle of separation of church and state.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Post Office said the postal service removed the banner because postal policy prohibits the placement of notices on postal property unless they’re official government notices.

The Pittsburg Morning Sun reports that a similar banner appeared at a couple local businesses by Thursday, and a local sign company says requests for more signs have been pouring in.