In Theory: Florida bill aims to expand religious expression in schools
A bill approved by the Florida Senate grants students, parents and school officials wider rights to express their religious beliefs in public schools.
Supporters of SB 436, approved by the state Senate on March 23, say it’s in response to the tightening of free speech rights in schools, “including prohibiting students from wearing crosses as jewelry, or chiding students who want to include religious figures in their academic work,” the Associated Press reports.
Senate President Joe Negron said the bill would also allow Muslims to wear hijabs in schools.
Opponents says the bill could potentially “open the door from everything from cracking down on science teachers who teach evolution to allowing Christian students to intimidate those of other faiths.”
Sen. Gary Farmer (D-Fort Lauderdale) said the measure could “lead to students proselytizing in school.”
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Q. What do you think of the bill? How do you feel about its supporters’ and opponents’ arguments?
When I taught U.S. history at a Christian college I discussed the role of religion in the American story. In their course evaluations some students complained that I had not emphasized the role of faith in history. I took this as a compliment because it meant that I had elaborated on the significance of religion without proselytizing for a particular interpretation of faith, a job better handled by the religion and philosophy department.
During high school my son had an enterprising teacher who designed an elective course on world religions that took advantage of the concentration of many different faith groups in that district. The class learned about the ideas and practices connected with the houses of worship the students passed each day so they could be conversant with the traditions of their classmates.
In our public education system we suffer from a rigidity bordering on fundamentalism, so that if a circumstance or phenomenon related to religion is mentioned, it is interpreted as advocating for that particular faith. Competent teachers can present multiple sides of the story without misrepresenting those ideas with which he or she may disagree. Well-rounded social studies curricula inform students about different faith traditions (atheism and skepticism as well) and how each ties into the fabric of our diverse nation.
But that is not what Florida state Senator Dennis Baxley’s version of a Religious Viewpoint Antidiscrimination Act would accomplish. According to Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Florida bills would force teachers to countenance religious expression in all assignments, potentially allowing students to evangelize in the classroom. Baxley, a Republican and a Southern Baptist, wants to require schools to allow student-led prayers at school events, which violates the 1st Amendment by endorsing one expression of faith over others.
In this moment of wailing about walls, the “wall of separation between church and state,” described by Thomas Jefferson in his 1802 letter to the Danbury Baptists is the one I want to reinforce. I hope Senator Baxley will read Jefferson’s letter and be moved to retract his theocratic legislation.
David L. Hostetter, Ph.D.
Vice President, Unitarian Universalist Church of the Verdugo Hills
La Crescenta
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I believe this bill is an appropriate response to the modern mindset that is seeking to change our “freedom of religion” into “freedom from religion.” Imagine an educational atmosphere that promotes the free exchange of ideas without fear of reprimand, that encourages self-expression, that considers opposing viewpoints from the perspective of rational dialogue and open-minded consideration. That’s exactly what you will never have when students are silenced, censored and severed from their constitutional rights, as they recently have been.
The opponents’ arguments I have seen appear to be wild and alarmist. The sky will not fall if students talk about their faith or wear apparel representative of it. Heaven knows such expressions happen on a daily basis in the real world, the world they will soon face on their own. Perhaps the schools should sharpen their focus on education instead of some imagined equalization of all faiths. God himself does not censor, silence or separate people from the sometimes offensive truth that Jesus Christ died for sinners, among whom we must all count ourselves. He simply lets us choose how we will respond to it. That policy will work in schools as well.
Pastor Jon Barta
Burbank
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I would be interested in knowing more facts regarding claims that Florida students are being denied their freedom of religion, however I do know that students do not have unqualified free speech rights in educational settings. Including religious figures in academic work may or not be appropriate to a given assignment.
Parts of southern Florida will be under water by 2025, and scientists say Miami is already “past the point of no return,” with most of south Florida to be completely flooded by 2100. I can’t help but think, first and foremost, that the Florida Senate has bigger fish to fry, and those fish will soon be swimming freely where Floridians used to live — apparently one in eight homes will be under water by the end of this century.
Roberta Medford
Atheist
Montrose
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Does it bother anyone else that we even have to have this discussion; that what we’re answering is whether to reinstate religious freedom? And I take umbrage at this knee-jerk Christophobia that if we allow the natural expression of faith, that it will be the followers of Christ who will then start badgering all others. Really? If that were said of the Muslims, or the Jews, or the Hindus, would it slide so easily by in the newspapers as simply a legitimate and objective concern? If Christian kids did that, then they wouldn’t be following God, and if they did such a thing, it would be a teaching moment (as it would be likewise for any brash juvenile of any or no religious persuasion).
Most schoolkids do not bound out of bed in the morning and head straight to their knees, followed by a careful decision about which “Jesus Saves” T-shirt they will don. Of the few Christian kids that do, and the true believers of other faiths whose religion is reflected in their manners and attire, allowance should surely be made, and everyone should be taught to respect this freedom we all share in a society that won’t cut you head off for having a different religious opinion. We do seem to be teaching that we’ll cut your heart out, nonetheless, and this should stop.
Are we training students to live in a free, Western, democratic society, or shall we raise a bunch of offended snowflakes to rule the next generation, where they legislate against visible places of worship, and deny the use of public airways for religious purposes, and where toleration is turned upside down and nothing is really tolerated anywhere in society? Far-fetched? I don’t think so.
We’re currently teaching impressionable youngsters to cringe at the mere sight of a Bible and immediately eschew visible signs of any religion. We are always just a generation away from totalitarianism, and real champions of freedom ought to be concerned when peaceful expression is quashed in any public venue.
Rev. Bryan A. Griem
Tujunga