Schools Ban Charlie Brown, Nativity Scenes and Poinsettias
First, schools banned Halloween. Now a class outing to see a church performance of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" could be nixed as well. Have schools taken things too far when it comes to 'anti-Christmas' activities?
“A Charlie Brown Christmas” has been a holiday TV classic for years. So when students at Terry Elementary School in Little Rock, Ark., were invited on a class field trip to see a performance of the show this December, they were excited. But their excitement was quickly quenched when a parent complained; an atheist group got wind of the outing and called it a “violation of religious freedom” because it contains some religious content and will be performed at a church. The school sent a letter home to the parents detailing the field trip and letting them know that it did, indeed, contain a small amount of religious content but that any child who wished not to go could be exempt from attending. The outing also included a food drive for area …
Chris Lewitzke
9:14 pm on Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Are you familiar with the establishment clause? As in the part of the First Amendment that says "Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion"? That, in essence, is the separation of church and state. If a school-as a part of the state government-were to make rules allowing the support or celebration of a religious holiday, that would effectively be breaking the First … more ›