We here in Owasso, Oklahoma are proud of our Grade Schoolers. Not only do they manage to form and promote their "club", they also recognise the persecution of their club by the School Board, and it's Superintendent, Dr Ogilvie.
So fired up are the five and six-year-olds that they managed to find an out of State law firm to represent them in Federal Court.
They will go far, our children.
ps ... Vested interest declared up front. Two of my children attend this school. The eight year old daughter refuses to discuss this telling me to "talk to her attorney".
There must be a back story here ... let's explore.
For the last year, a morning Prayer Group, the "Owasso Kids for Christ" has met before school to do whatever it is that small children in Prayer Groups do.
The school district has accommodated this activity, and continues to do so. From a personal point of view I think that allowing these groups access to schools blurs the boundaries of the 1st Amendment, and I would refuse them all permission, but nonetheless, they are permitted.
What this group, sponsored I believe, by the 1st Baptist Church of Owasso, has additionally done is print flyers advertising the event, for distribution in the school.
It is that activity that has been stopped.
The Press Release:
NEWS RELEASE FOR OWASSO PUBLIC SCHOOLS
October 25, 2011
Owasso Superintendent, Dr. Clark Ogilvie acknowledged today that a local group (Owasso Kids for Christ) had filed a lawsuit as of October 10th of 2011, submitted to federal court by two legal firms from Arizona and Georgia respectively over access to the district’s Northeast Elementary School.
Dr. Ogilvie indicates that the issue has been misconstrued and taken out of context and merits clarification on two points in particular. First, the Owasso School District has never denied access to any religious groups in its schools. Secondly, religious groups have met in the district’s facilities for years without discrimination but are asked to follow certain guidelines/school policies in their operation. The district’s policies in these matters are clear and available online at the school district’s website.
end.
Owasso Public Schools has a policy which is available online, and they must feel that the "recruiting" element of the flyers is a breach of the awkward bit of the Constitution that allows my children to attend Public School free from the influence of their little cult. Yes, that was deliberately harsh, but here is the thing ...
You cannot move in this town without needing your GPS to provide detours around the mega-churches, of which the 1st Baptist is the biggest. If members of these churches wish their children to attend a Prayer Meeting before school, then they are not short of avenues in which they may legitimately promote the event. They do not need, and should be denied the opportunity, to proselytize and recruit actually in the school.
Indeed the action by the School Board is surprising, given that this is a town where the Principal of the Sixth Grade Center felt it okay to tell students that "being gay is a sin". What surprised me about that when I heard it from my then sixth grader was not that she held that view, but that she felt comfortable enough to express it in school.
Matt Sharp, and attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund said:
“This is a simple matter of a school district targeting a Christian organization.”
From WorldNetDaily:
The district's attorney also sent a letter to Kids for Christ, further explaining why the group could no longer use the bulletin board, literature table and PA announcement system afforded to other community groups:
"The allowing of such activities to impressionable elementary students during the regular school day and while school is in session would certainly raise the issue as to endorsement of religion," the attorney wrote. "In fact, it is difficult to see how an elementary student could discern that [Kids for Christ] is not endorsed by the school district when such activities on behalf of [Kids for Christ] would be occurring by the school district to a captive elementary student audience."
The Alliance Defense Fund countered with:
"A Christian organization should not be targeted for discrimination when it is simply seeking to publicize its voluntary meetings just like other community groups do," said ADF Litigation Staff Counsel Matt Sharp. "The district would have people believe that the Constitution requires a religious organization to be singled out in this manner when, in reality, the Constitution strictly prohibits this type of discrimination. The courts have repeatedly upheld this."
See ... It's those "poor Oppressed Christians" again.
Try changing the word "Christian" in the above quote to "Musilm", and see how fast Mr Sharp is to jump into the fray!
So ... They have their Churches ... many of them and they are large, they have a Facebook page and word of mouth. They are allowed to advertise externally, although this is discouraged as it is a contentious issue with respect to the use of the school, and they are allowed to meet unhampered.
Yet this is not good enough. They also demand the right to distribute their material in school, during the school day. That is ALL that has been denied and in come the heavy lawyers to trample over my children's rights to live free from religion.
This is one I hope they lose, and lose big. I will offer every assistance.
Meanwhile .... I expect an "A" in Civics from my kids!!!