ACLU questions motivation behind pulling of Iowa atheist bus ads

August 7, 9:06 AMAtheism ExaminerTrina Hoaks

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Earlier this week, the Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) removed atheist ads from its buses within days of them going up. Though it was said they were pulled because they were never approved, the group that put the ads up, Iowa Atheists and Freethinkers (IAF), maintains that the ads were approved.

There is speculation that the ads were pulled because DART received complaints following the ads' appearances on buses. Even the governor has chimed in on the issue referring to the ads as "disturbing" and "offensive."

Now, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has gotten involved, questioning the true motivation behind the ads being pulled. It has been reported that they are investigating the legality of Dart's actions. They have requested a letter from DART explaining its actions as well as copies of internal communications concerning the ads.

According to the IAF's Web site, the group is dismayed by this turn of events. A post reads, "Obviously this is a very upsetting turn of events. Our experiences dealing with the people at DART were very positive until now. We have a signed contract and they printed the signs for us." Reportedly, the contract was signed on May 27th.

IAF was made aware of there being a problem only after the ads had been pulled. They said, "The latest news is because of an 'overwhelming' number of phone calls DART has pulled our ads from their buses. We were informed of this [on the 4th]."

Supposedly, the ads did not receive the "final approval" they needed from the general manager of DART, Brad Miller, and its commission chairwoman, Angela Connolly. It is understandable that ads (once they are produced) would require final approval before being placed, but, that stage of approval is typically for quality not content.

It would be ridiculous for any company, including DART, to spend the money to produce ads before getting content approval. The story is a bit hard to swallow. Still, Miller and Connolly maintain that the ads did not receive approval to be run on Des Moines area buses.