A nativity that has marked every Christmas for nearly 40 years has been removed from outside a North Carolina courthouse following complaints from a group about the display being on government property, Fox 46 reports.

The nativity, a favorite of Dallas, N.C., residents, was moved down the street from the court to a local auto shop after The Freedom From Religion Foundation complained that the statues of Joseph, Mary and the infant Jesus were on government property and therefore owned by the Town of Dallas.

[image]

"Christmas is not about snowmen, reindeer, Christmas trees, lights – it’s about Christ," 12-year old Coleman Montgomery of Dallas told Fox 46.

In a peaceful protest over the removal of the nativity, hundreds reportedly gathered to display a live nativity on the sidewalk of the Old Courthouse Saturday night.

[pullquote]

In another case, the town council in Jay, Fla., removed last week a nativity scene from in front of City Hall, declaring it “surplus property” and sold it so it could be displayed on private grounds.

As in the Dallas, N.C., case, a complaint from the Freedom From Religion Foundation led to the decision, WEAR-TV reported.

The town of Jay decided not to pursue a legal fight because a court battle would reportedly cost up to $100,000.

"The majority of the folks have been very supportive in understanding that there is a reason we moved it from City Hall to downtown. Actually, now that it's downtown, it is more visible to the public than it was right here at city hall," Jay Mayor Kurvin Qualls said, according to the station.

"We'd like to thank the 'wise men' and women of the town council for doing the right thing, and ensuring that everyone in Jay can visit city hall without feeling like an outsider in December. In addition to divesting the town of a divisive display, their action has added money to the tax coffers and that's always a plus," said FFRF Co-President Dan Barker, in a statement on the organization’s website.