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August 13, 2013

Tennessee: Judge Orders Baby's Name Changed from "Messiah" to "Martin" 
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A Tennessee mother is appealing a judge's order to change her infant
son's first name from "Messiah" to "Martin." The baby's parents ended up
in court when they could not agree on his last name. But Child Support
Magistrate Lu Ann Bellow said they had to change Messiah's first name,
replacing it with Martin — his mother's surname. Judge Bellow told
Knoxville TV station WBIR, "The word 'Messiah' is a title and it's a
title that has only been earned by one person and that one person is
Jesus Christ." She said Messiah's name could "put him at odds with a lot
of people" in the heavily Christian county. Interestingly we have our
own Messiah here at Democracy Now! – our video fellow Messiah Rhodes.
We asked him to comment on the judge's ruling.

Messiah Rhodes: "I was raised by a conservative Christian household by
my grandparents, and I never faced any hostility because of my name.
It's interesting this is happening in Tennessee, a state with a history
of racial bigotry, from violent race riots to the formation of the KKK
to the assassination of Martin Luther King. It's still that it's about a
name. But it's more than just about a name. It's what happens when there
is no separation between church and state."

 

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