The Smithsonian issued an apology after a security guard reportedly forced a group of Catholic students and chaperones to leave The National Air and Space Museum on January 20 because the group wore hats with a pro-life message. The apology came only after a federal lawsuit was filed by the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) on behalf of the students and adults. “The museum staff mocked the students, called them expletives, and made comments that the museum was a ‘neutral zone’ where they could not express such statements,” ACLJ Executive Director Jordan Sekulow said in a statement. Sekulow said of the case, “This was a clear-cut First Amendment violation, not only of their freedom of speech but of religion as well.”
