The management of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) decided to remove plastic holiday trees “after a rabbi asked to have an 8-foot-tall menorah displayed next to the largest tree in the international arrival hall.” The removal of the trees became a national media controversy. The leaders of the airport were obliged to respond, to decide whether to have any kind of holiday display, and if so, whether and how to incorporate elements that might be considered religious.
Read the Part A of this case by Ellie Pierce of the Pluralism Project. Discuss what you would do if you were in charge. You may consider process (who should make the decision and how), or develop a specific plan for holiday displays, or both. Do not focus on the legal/constitutional issues for a public facility in the United States. Instead, assume that Sea-Tac has some legal leeway to choose a response, and ask what you would do.
Related Concepts
- The commons
- Deliberative democracy
- Exclusion
- Identity
