Kentucky resident, Ben Hart, tried to get a custom license plate reading “IM GOD” The man’s request was denied because it was deemed “vulgar” and “offensive.”
Patrick Elliot, attorney for the Freedom From Religion Foundation, sent a letter to the state office saying that they were violating the First Amendment.
Kentucky has a rule that says custom plates can’t be obscene or vulgar. But that is kind of subjective and unconstitutional. We all deserve the right to freedom of expression.
This was the state’s response:
“… the plate was not rejected because of vulgarity or obscenity. I will direct your attention to 601 KAR 9:012, Section 5(1). It clearly establishes a standard of good taste and decency. Without question, the use of “IM GOD” is not in good taste and would create the potential of distraction to other drivers and possibly confrontations… We would have taken the very same position had the individual requested plates that read ‘IM ALLAH’ or ‘IM BUDDAH’ [sic] or ‘IM SATAN.'”
The state offers an “In God We Trust” plate, but they deem this to be offensive. The laws need to be a lot more specific.
Hart was allowed to get a plate with the same words on it when he lived in Ohio, but Kentucky somehow deemed it wrong.
Last year, a woman in New Jersey had to fight for her right to have a plate that said “8THEIST” on it. That one was rejected, but when she tried one that said “BAPTIST.” That one got approved.
David Silverman, the president of American Atheists, got in trouble when he tried to get a plate that said “ATHE1ST.”
One atheist was able to get her driver’s license picture with a spaghetti strainer on her head because she is a “Pastafarian.” Pastafarian is a satirical religion based on the Flying Spaghetti Monster, made up by atheists.
Featured image by Synthesis Studios via Flickr, available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic license.
