Congressman has painting of Statue of Liberty in hijab in his office

SANTA ANA, Calif. (WTXF/FOX NEWS) - Rep. J. Luis Correa (D-CA) has come under fire for a painting hanging in his California office that shows the Statue of Liberty wearing a hijab, a head covering often worn by Muslim women.

Local activist group We the People Rising has attacked the painting -- which was created by a high school student as part of the Congressional Art Competition -- as an unpatriotic violation of the separation of church and state.

Mike McGetrick, an activist with the group, called the painting "perplexing" and "disturbing" in a letter to Correa asking him to take it down, the Washington Post reported.

"Ultimately, to attribute a specific religion to the Statue of Liberty is inaccurate, unprofessional and offensive," McGetrick wrote. "In addition, the painting displays the torch of the Statue of Liberty, not as the heralded beacon of light, but rather held awkwardly to one side - in a perplexing, even disturbing, manner."

FOX News has more, including reports that during a July meeting between We the People Rising members and a Correa staffer, McGetrick called the painting "filthy."