July 19, 2000
Lane Beattie
State Olympic Officer
116 State Capitol
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114
The Honorable Rocky Anderson
Salt Lake City Mayor
451 South State Street, Room 306
Salt Lake City, Utah 84111
Re: SLOC Establishment Clause Issues
Dear Senator Beattie and Mayor Anderson,
The Jefferson 21st Century Institute has serious concerns regarding government participation in the environmental program adopted by the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games (SLOC). As the program advocates animism and other eco- spiritual religious beliefs, affiliation of state and local governments with the 2002 Games conveys the message that such governments favor eco-spiritual religion over other religion and non-religion. Such favoring of religious beliefs violates the Establishment Clause of the first Amendment of the United States Constitution.
SLOC's environmental program is operated under the logo, "Spirit of the Land," a theme based upon Native American animist religious beliefs. As part of its environmental program SLOC inaugurated its "Tree-cology" school iniative on Earth Day, April 22, 1999, at W. Russel Todd Elementary School in Ft. Duchesne, Utah, with a ceremony which included prayers and devotionals on behalf of Mother Earth and trees. The Deseret News reported, "SLOC chose to launch its Tree-cology progam on the Uintah and Ouray Ute Reservation because American Indian environmental values were those shared by the SLOC environmental program. ‘There is a natural fit between Native American culture and environmental protection,' said Diane Conrad director of the program. ‘So much of their spiritual and physical life revolves around environmental protection.' ... Conrad said trees were chosen as a major thrust of the 2002 Winter Games environmental program because of their historic role in religion and mythology ... ‘Trees
Lane Beattie
Honorable Rocky Anderson
July 19, 2000
Page 2
are sacred to many cultures around the world and throughout history,' she said. ... John Fowler the chief Olympic officer to Gov. Mike Leavitt, agreed noting that everyone of all faiths and throughout time has revered trees." After the Institute objected to the Earth Day ceremony as violating the Establishment Clause, the Uintah School District apologized. (See enclosed articles, letter of apology from school board attorney and Institute's report.)
Contrary to Mr. Fowler's statement during the Earth Day ceremony, the religious tradition of most of Western Civilization has not regarded objects of nature as soul-filled beings or as objects as worship. Holding the official position now occupied by Mr. Beattie, Mr. Fowler clearly conveyed that the State of Utah favors animism, earth-worship and eco-spirituality. Such favoritism simultaneously disparaged the beliefs of Moslems, Christians, Jews, atheists and others who reject such religion, thereby violating the Establishment Clause.
There was a quiet period following the Institute's complaints regarding SLOC's 1999 Earth Day program at Todd Elementary. However, in June 2000, SLOC invited theologian Don Conroy, president of the North American Coalition on Religion and Ecology to address Utah community leaders as part of its environmental program. According to the enclosed Tribune article, Mr. Conroy stated that a desired "global environmental ethic will be possible only if it is based on the spiritual values of the Earth's diverse cultures." Thus SLOC, again with government leaders in tow, has set out to convey the spurious message that there is, or should be, a universal religious concensus on eco-spirituality.
SLOC has maintained that it is a private organization and that, as such, it is free to adopt an environmental program based upon religious advocacy. Whether, in light of public financial subsidies and intimate state and local government associations, SLOC is a private organization is highly questionable. Regardless of SLOC's alleged status, however, it is a patent violation of the Establishment Clause for state and local governments to align themselves with an organization which has declared the advocacy of animism and eco-spirituality one of its primary purposes.
The Institute requests that you immediately take meaningful steps to remove your governments from affiliation with SLOC and its religion-based environmental program. If necessary, the Institute may assist plaintiffs to bring actions against state and local governments and SLOC to assure that the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment is respected. In hopes of avoiding this course of action, the Institute would be willing to meet with you to discuss these matters.
Lane Beattie
The Honorable Rocky Anderson
July 19, 2000
Page 3
Thank you for your serious consideration.
Sincerely,
Paul W. Mortensen
Executive Vice President
Jefferson 21st Century Institute
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Enclosures
Copy: Brian E. Katz
Associate General Counsel
Salt Lake Organizing Committee
August 2, 2000
Mitt Romney
257 East 200 South, Suite 600
Salt Lake City, Utah 84145
Dear Mitt,
Enclosed is a copy of a letter I recently received from Paul W. Mortensen, Executive Vice President of the Jefferson 21st Century Institute, with copies of documents Mr. Mortensen enclosed with his letter. I believe Mr. Mortensen raises some legitimate points, which we should earnestly discuss.
After you have had an opportunity to address these issues with other members of the SLOC staff, I would appreciate it if you or Diane Conrad would advise me regarding measures that will be taken to make certain that there will be no further establishment problems in connection with the 2002 Olympic Games. The "private" status of SLOC does not avoid the establishment issues, particularly in light of the close relationship between Salt Lake City and SLOC.
I was surprised to read that prayers were part of the SLOC event held on Earth Day, April 22, 1999, at W. Russel Todd Elementary School in Ft. Duchesne, Utah. The offering of prayers at such events are clearly inappropriate. Perhaps the religious slant of the SLOC environmental program is also inappropriate. Mr. Mortensen's letter should serve to make us all more sensitive to the need to observe the separation of church and government throughout the activities planned by SLOC. Applied sensitivity to the issues raised by Mr. Mortensen should help us avoid unnecessary problems in the future.
I look forward to hearing from you or Ms. Conrad in the near future.
Best regards,
Ross C. Anderson
Mayor
cc. Paul W. Mortensen
Lane Beattie
September 18, 2000
The Honorable Rocky Anderson
Salt Lake City Mayor
451 South State Street, Room 306
Salt Lake City, Utah 84111
Re: SLOC Establishment Clause issues
Dear Mayor Anderson,
We sincerely appreciate the attention you gave to our letter of July 19, 2000 as reflected by your letter dated August 2, 2000 to Mitt Romney. We consider ourselves fortunate to be communicating with a municipal executive who has familiarity with Establishment Clause law. However, since receipt of the copy of your letter to Mr. Romney, we have heard nothing further regarding our concerns.
Were you able to meet with Mr. Romney or Diane Conrad? Was any progress made in getting SLOC to remove the religious theme from its environmental program? Depending on the answers to these questions, what does Salt Lake City intend to do given SLOC's position?
We are sending a copy of this letter to Lane Beattie. We are very concerned that we have received no reply whatsoever from the Governor's office. Hopefully, this will generate a response from Mr. Beattie.
Sincerely,
Paul W. Mortensen
Executive Vice President
Jefferson 21st Century Institute
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Copy: Lane Beattie
State Olympic Officer
November 7, 2000
Paul W. Mortensen
Executive Vice President
Jefferson 21st Century Institute
P.O. Box 1294
Centerville, Utah 84014
Dear Mr. Mortensen,
Thank you for your recent letter concerning Establishment Clause issues and SLOC. I have voiced my concerns to SLOC emphatically and clearly regarding Establishment Clause issues, and fully expect that SLOC will be more mindful of these concerns in the future.
As I indicated in my letter to Mitt Romney, my primary concern regarding the Establishment Clause was that prayers were part of the SLOC event held on Earth Day, April 12, 1999, at W. Russel Todd Elementary School in Ft. Duchesne, Utah. I do not concur with the assertion that SLOC is promoting animism, earth-worship, or eco-spirituality, nor with the belief that involving a variety of cultural and religious representatives in the environmental program violates the Establishment Clause.
Although I do not intend to take further action at this time, I will remain watchful for SLOC activities that present legitimate Establishment Clause problems and make Mr. Romney aware of those problems should the need arise.
I am confident that the commitment of my Administration and SLOC to a program of progressive environmental initiatives, coupled with the involvement of people with diverse cultural and religious beliefs, will provide us with a significant and enduring environmental legacy. I firmly believe we can achieve this legacy without any further Establishment Clause problems.
Thank you for sharing your concerns on this issues.
Best regards,
Ross C. Anderson
Mayor
110700djb-SLOC-Mortensen.doc
November 21, 2000
The Honorable Rocky Anderson
Salt Lake City Mayor
451 South State Street, Room 306
Salt Lake City, Utah 84111
Re: SLOC Establishment Clause issues
Dear Mayor Anderson,
Thank you for your letter of November 7, 2000. We strongly agree that the 2002 Olympic games and related events must include people of diverse cultural and religious backgrounds. Indeed how could an international event such as the Olympics do otherwise? The issue is not whether people of many cultures and religions will be welcomed and represented in Olympic programs. The issue is whether select religious beliefs will continue to be sponsored through SLOC's environmental program.
In sponsoring the message that religious reverence of the earth is necessary to preserve the ecological health of the planet, SLOC disparages deeply held beliefs of persons who believe that worship of creation is idolatry and of atheists and others who object to merging religion with ecology. When by statements or conduct Utah governments endorse the message, the Establishment Clause is violated.
We had hoped that SLOC would eliminate what you, in your previous letter, correctly identified as the "religious slant" of SLOC's environmental program. Evidently, with your city's concurrence, SLOC intends to maintain its "progressive" religious slant. Unfortunately, the theme of the environmental program, and of its lock-step "diversity" of participants, remains that there is a religious duty to reverence the earth.
The Honorable Rocky Anderson
Salt Lake City Mayor
November 21, 2000
Page 2
Your current position notwithstanding, SLOC has never disavowed the devotion to earth worship it so clearly and carefully announced at the 1999 Earth Day ceremonies at Todd Elementary. The environmental program continues to maintain its religious title, "Spirit of the Earth." The program's environmental vision statement still prominently "includes reverence and passion for the land." Bishop Irish, Ute elder Clifford Duncan, and theologist Don Conroy are obviously only three of an ongoing parade of eco-theologists planned for the program. Please review the enclosed article, "Theology, Ecology Come Together," from the November 11, 2000, Salt Lake Tribune for a listing of similar theologists we may expect to be included in SLOC's religious procession.
Why are Utah governments tangled in liberal theology's invasion of what should be the scientific field of ecology? Salt Lake City has attached itself to a movement within the Olympic organization which has no regard for the Establishment Clause. This plus Mr. Beattie's utter failure to communicate, following his predecessor's endorsement of the program's religious theme, leaves this organization convinced of the need to disentangle Utah's governments from the environmental program.
Sincerely,
Paul W. Mortensen
Executive Vice President
Jefferson 21st Century Institute
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Enclosures
Copy: Lane Beattie
State Olympic Officer
December 19, 2000
Paul W. Mortensen
Executive Vice President
Jefferson 21st Century Institute
P. O. Box 1294
Centerville, Utah 84014
Dear Mr. Mortensen,
Thank you for your recent letter concerning Establishment Clause issues and SLOC.
I disagree with your most recent assessment of SLOC's environmental programs. While they promote an ethic of caring for the earth and responsible use of natural resources, they do not promote a religion of earth-worship or idolatry. Fostering a conservation ethic is, after all, the purpose of the SLOC environmental program. It is fully intended to link the Salt Lake 2002 Winter Games with an environmentally oriented theme. But it is you, not SLOC or Salt Lake City, who has attributed religious overtones to this theme.
As I have stated before, I am confident in the ability of these environmental initiatives to provide us with a significant and enduring environmental legacy. I firmly believe we can achieve this legacy without any further Establishment Clause problems.
Thank you for sharing your concerns on this issue.
Best Regards,
Ross C. Anderson
Mayor
121900-dbj-SLOC-Mortensen.doc