Liberty Counsel is continuing its campaign that calls on consumers to help save the Christian essence of the season.
“This is our 17th year for the Friend or Foe Christmas Campaign,” says Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver. “It’s designed to educate and, if necessary, litigate to make sure that the religious viewpoints and Christian essence and themes are not censored from Christmas. So we provide educational resources about what can be done — what cities, counties, government entities, schools, and even facilities for senior citizens can do with regards to Christmas.”
If the materials do not work, and if there is still censorship, Liberty Counsel will represent individuals and organizations to ensure that “litigation ultimately protects their First Amendment rights.”
This year’s campaign also includes an annual Naughty or Nice List of retailers to help inform shoppers so they can exercise their decisions accordingly.
“The Nice List includes retailers that are acknowledging Christmas. So, for example, they actually call Christmas trees ‘Christmas trees,'” Staver explains. “On the Naughty List are retailers that profit off of Christmas but pretend that it doesn’t even exist, and they intentionally censor Christmas, such as calling Christmas trees ‘holiday trees,’ and it goes on and on and on.”
This years Nice List of national retailers include: American Eagle Outfitters, Bath & Body Works, Belk, Dillard’s, Hallmark, The Home Depot, JCPenney, Kmart, Lowe’s, Staple, and Walmart.
This years Naughty List includes: Barnes & Noble, Burlington Coat Factory, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Gap, Inc., J. Crew Outfitters, The Limited, Rite AidPharmecy, Target, TJ Maxx, and Walgreens.
The good news, says Staver, is that more retailers have made the Nice List in recent years.
“There are some that have never come off the Naughty List, and there were some that were on the Naughty List that eventually ran out of business,” he continues. “I think what has happened is people make their voice known about why they patronize one store, and they also make their voice known to another why they’re not going to patronize that store.”