Associated Press
A group of Republican Oklahoma lawmakers say they’re angered about a plan to put up a gay pride-themed, 6-foot-tall pole in the Sooner State Capitol rotunda to celebrate the fictional holiday Festivus from the popular 1990s sitcom “Seinfeld.”
South Florida blogger Chaz Stevens was approved to display the pole, similar to one in the Florida Capitol. Similar poles are expected to be put up in Georgia, Illinois, Michigan and Washington, Stevens said.
But four GOP lawmakers in Oklahoma issued a statement Thursday saying they perceived the display as an attack on Christianity.
Stevens’ application, however, was approved by the Office of Management and Enterprise Services based on guidelines it has for any display at the Capitol.
Broken Arrow Republican David Brumbaugh says the display was an example of “a war on Christmas.” Arcadia Republican Lewis Moore called the Festivus pole a “sacrilegious symbol.”
In Arkansas, Secretary of State Mark Martin‘s office denied the request in a Dec. 4 letter that cited several problems with the application, including failure to comply with trademark law and a lack of specifics on how the pole would be anchored.
The pole pays homage both to gay rights and the Seinfeld episode in which a character’s quirky father describes a holiday that includes feats of strength and the airing of grievances.
The 6-foot-pole is wrapped in the colors of the gay pride rainbow flag and topped with a disco ball.
The original display was first put up in Florida three years ago, made of empty Pabst Blue Ribbon beer cans.
The approval of the pole in Oklahoma comes just months after the state Supreme Court ruled that a permanent Ten Commandments monument had to be removed from the Capitol grounds.
Reprinted with permission of The Associated Press
