One thing that was great about the Enlightenment era from which our nation was born is that its great thinkers were mostly secular humanists. By keeping their religion private, they didn't let it interfere with public affairs. 235 years later, we have to put up with this shit.
[...]
The American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana urged Stacey Pullen, principal of Bastrop High School, to respect the First Amendment and ensure Friday night's graduation did not include a prayer as originally proposed.
Senior Damon Fowler had reportedly objected to the planned prayer and informed the Morehouse Parish School Board about his objection, saying it violated his right to a ceremony free of government-endorsed religion. After he complained to school authorities — and said he would contact the ACLU if necessary — school officials reportedly removed the prayer from the program.
However, during the event, fellow senior Laci Rae Mattice called for a moment of silence but expressed her opinion first.
"I want to ask for the Lord's blessings upon us," Mattice said, followed by cheers and applause from the audience. She then led the audience in the Lord's Prayer, "if they wanted to."
Pullen said Mattice was instructed not to mention anything about religion and only observe the moment of silence. She said she was unsure if the ACLU or Fowler would seek legal action against the school.
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"The First Amendment prohibition on government endorsement of religion exists to protect the minority from the majority," said Marjorie R. Esman, ACLU of Louisiana executive director. "Freedom of religion belongs to everyone, not just those whose views may be more popular than others."
At the Thursday night rehearsal for the graduation, another senior, Sarah Barlow, said a prayer with reference to Jesus Christ. The prayer was listed in the graduation program, which had to be reprinted at taxpayer expense.
"Taxpayers should not have to spend money fixing problems caused by violations of the law," Esman said. "Public school officials must remember that they have a duty to uphold the law, to protect the rights of all of their students, and that any failure to do so costs money that should be spent in the classroom. Religious freedom has flourished in this country because we do not allow the government to promote one faith over others."
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I hope the ACLU sues. This is utter bullshit, and it can't be tolerated. The school didn't technically endorse this, but their inaction towards the prayer once it started says enough. Any other speech that was blatantly inappropriate, they would've stopped, and moved on. At this? Nothing.
I'm not sure if the Christians who support prayer in public schools really understand what the issue is about here. I don't care if you're a Christian. Nobody does. That is completely irrelevant. Nobody is trying to take away anybody's faith. It's just that the first amendment makes it very clear that the government cannot endorse a religion. Public schools are funded by taxpayers. Public schools speak on behalf of the government. Prayer in public schools would mean that the government endorses a religion, and that is illegal. Get it? School is not church. This isn't hard. If a teacher got up there and started telling everyone there's no God, I would oppose that just as much. Why do these idiots always feel so obligated to do this when the Bible tells you to pray quietly? The Bible is the book they read, right? A school is supposed to a place of learning, and religion has no place in it.
Here's the video if you want.
"I have something to say. I respect the beliefs of other people, but I feel I can't go home without giving glory to my Lord today."
Really? So you wouldn't mind if someone else went up there and said "I respect the beliefs of other people, but Allahu Akbar, Allah is great." Or maybe, "I respect the beliefs of other people, but I feel I can't go home without saying there is no God and you live in a cold, meaningless universe."
Someone shouted "First Amendment rights" in the middle of the prayer, so at least this crowd had one patriot in it. Fucking dumbasses.
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