Religious Freedom Act Awaiting Wilson’s OK

As hundreds of thousands of students prepare to return to public schools after Labor Day, a bill sits on Gov. Pete Wilson’s desk that could affect many of them and their teachers.

AB 1617, the Religious Freedom Protection Act, would prevent state and local governments from interfering with religious observances unless a compelling reason could be shown.

The bill’s supporters cite the example of a Jewish student who wears a yarmulke (and it would seem to apply equally to a Sikh youth wearing a turban). Even if a school district had a policy outlawing the wearing of hats in school, the bill would override the policy unless the school could show serious cause for maintaining it.

Another situation that the bill probably would cover is the perfect-attendance awards given by some schools at the end of the school year. Currently, a student who misses class to observe a religious holiday such as the Jewish new year, the Muslim Eid al-Fitr festival or the Roman Catholic Feast of the Immaculate Conception would not be eligible for the award.

The law also might make school districts more considerate of religious minorities in planning the school calendar. From 1995 to 1997, a Southern California school district had the dubious distinction of either being unaware of or not taking seriously the Jewish High Holidays. In 1995, the first day of fall classes was scheduled for Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year, until a local rabbi intervened. The following year, a districtwide development day for teachers was held on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Then, last fall, the district completed this dubious triple-play by holding a meeting for new school administrators on Rosh Hashana.

Carol Levy, executive director of the Pacific Southwest Region of the American Jewish Congress, characterized the proposed law as a “ ‘stop, look and listen’ caveat. It’s not saying that schools can’t make rules.”

Levy said some people might thing the bill would reintroduce prayer in public schools, which it would not. The Supreme Court’s 1962 Engle vs. Vitale decision declared school-sponsored prayer unconstitutional.

On the other hand, according to the Freedom Forum First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University, there is a broad legal consensus that students are free to pray alone or in groups, as long as the prayer is not disruptive, does not infringe on the rights of others and is student initiated.

Another benefit of the proposed law might be a new awareness that teaching about religion--as opposed to any kind of religious indoctrination--is both permissible and desirable. American history is difficult to understand without an awareness, for example, that the Puritans came to Massachusetts Bay seeking religious freedom, that Lincoln’s second inaugural address is part of an exposition on Psalm 19 or that Martin Luther King Jr. was an ordained clergyman with a doctorate in theology.

Wilson, of course, must look at other possible consequences of the bill. One is whether it would enable prisoners to demand special treatment. But the courts have thrown out such frivolous lawsuits brought by prisoners, and, according to Levy of the American Jewish Congress, only one-half of 1% of prisoner lawsuits involve the practice of religion.

The bill is a direct response to a 1997 U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, passed by Congress in 1993. It was introduced by Assemblyman Joe Baca (D-Rialto) and is backed by the California Coalition for the Free Exercise of Religion, which includes the ACLU, the American Jewish Congress, the Buddhist Sanga Council of Southern California, the Muslim Public Affairs Council, the Lutheran Office of Public Policy and the Traditional Values Coalition, among others.

The governor ought to heed the counsel of the Legislature and the array of religious and civil rights groups from across the political map and sign AB 1617 into law.

Benjamin J. Hubbard is a professor and chairman of the department of comparative religion at Cal State Fullerton. He can be reached by e-mail at bhubbard@fullerton.edu