Posted by
1deciple on Friday, October 30, 2009 12:00:00 AM
I just discovered a real jewel that parents
of kids in Public Schools, as well as teachers and all others concerned with
issues of Free Speech vs Separation of Church & State will be vitally
interested in. It's on the Rutherford Institute Web-site, and consists of a
six-part piece you can read/print out with encouraging, factual information
about Christian student’s rights under current law. It also includes a comprehensive 17 page
report in PDF format that you can save to file for whatever use you need. The
report details the history of case law involving suits brought against various
forms of religious expression in public school contexts since the Supreme Court
of the United States’ ruling that established the so-called ‘separation of
church and state’.
The Report speaks of “increasingly common and widely publicized lawsuits involving a raging
constitutional debate over the place of religion in public life. This fear—the
fear of being sued—has prompted many public school officials across the country
to implement restrictions that effectively banish expressions of religious
faith from our public schools” The
Report says that “Invariably, concerns
about violating the so-called “separation of church and state” are cited as the
justification for school officials’ actions…” “But such cases are evidence of a
disappointing reality about many Americans’ level of commitment to the
fundamental freedoms that are the hallmark of our society.”
The point is made that “By driving the expression of individual
students’ religious ideas from the schoolhouse, we teach our nation’s youth
that our fear of violating the Constitution—or worse, our fear of allowing
someone to feel uncomfortable—is greater than our commitment to the freedoms
that it protects. We teach them that it is better to suppress freedom than to
take a chance of giving too much of it.”
Summarizing the conditions prompting their
report, the Rutherford Institute says the following:
The
expression of ideas—even, perhaps especially, religious ones—is important to
the development
of society. As one commentator notes: “Encouraging cognitive conflict and expressive
behavior in the school not only forces students to express their own judgments or
opinions, but also serves the first amendment goals of self-fulfillment,
enlightenment,and
preparation of children for participation in a democratic society.” These goals will undoubtedly be thwarted if
we continue to suppress religious expression in public schools. It is
no answer to say that students can learn these invaluable lessons elsewhere.
Our children spend the overwhelming majority of their waking hours at school or
school-related events. School is their
society.
To forbid their religious expression at school is to leave students
little, if any, meaningful outlet for such expression. Clearly, the only way to foster a school
environment that is consistent with both the spirit and letter of the First
Amendment is to encourage full student expression in the public school system,
subject only, of course, to the school’s (and society’s) legitimate interest in
maintaining order and safety. Unfortunately, even educators who recognize this
often feel constrained by the threat of lawsuits.
There
is, however, good news. In most situations, the perceived conflict between the
so-called separation of church and state and students’ free speech and free
exercise rights
is a matter of misperception.
In other words, educators and administrators need not be
motivated by legal fears when making decisions regarding student religious expression.
In the words of one federal judge, “Free speech, free exercise, and the ban on establishment
are quite compatible when the government remains neutral and educates the
public about the reasons.”
I'm going to print it out for local
friends who are in various positions of authority in Public Education in the
area where I live. This material is EXTREMELY helpful, because it clears up
much fear induced mis-information which has inhibited perfectly permissible
religious expression/use of public school facilities in recent years. I urge
everyone who has a connection with Public education to avail yourselves of this
free information. I'm pasting in a link to the Rutherford Institute Webpage
below:
http://www.rutherford.org/articles_db/legal_features.asp?article_id...
1deciple