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| Prayer OK in public schools -- as long as it's Islamic prayer |
| 2005-09-06 |
| Yasmeen Elsamra had a simple request: While her classmates were eating lunch, she wanted to go off by herself for a few moments to pray. The 14-year-old was told she couldn't, and went home distraught that afternoon in October 2003. Praying five times a day is a cornerstone of her Muslim faith. "If I wasn't allowed to pray my second prayer at school, I couldn't do it at home," she said. "When school finishes, the third prayer begins." Her family contacted a Her case was part of a nationwide grassroots effort by Muslim parents to make public schools Paterson, New Jersey, home of the state's largest Arab-American community, lets some students out of class early Fridays to attend prayers with their parents' permission, and is one of a handful of New Jersey districts that closes schools for Eid-al-Fitr, a Muslim religious holiday. ACLU lawsuit 3 .. 2 .. 1 .. 0 .. 1 .. 2 .. 37 .. 3746 .. 97562378436 |
| Posted by:Jackal |
| #6 The vast majority of prayer in school occurs just before the first final exam of the year -- totally unorganized, utterly private, and completely heartfelt. And not all those prayers are made to any god at all. ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-09-06 21:15 |
| #5 And Deacon, too. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2005-09-06 15:18 |
| #4 I think Anonymoose has it right. I went to six years of high school football games (as a parent, wise guys!) and there was a prayer led by students before the kickoff. Somebody made a stink after my kids graduated, so I'm not sure if it's still going on. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2005-09-06 15:18 |
| #3 The vast majority of prayer at school is done by Xtian children, and done discreetly and politely. Out West, Mormon kids often have small, again discreet, prayer meetings during school hours on their own time. Even some orthodox Jewish and Catholic children can be seen mumbling a prayer at certain times. The only difference for a Moslem child would be that they both have an obvious, if quiet, ritual to perform, and one that must be done in private, as other children would take advantage of them in that vulnerable position. As long as the school doesn't direct, guide, endorse, or provide extraordinary resources in the furtherance of religion, it is demanded of them that they provide modest accommodation and respect to children's religious needs. The same rules apply to children who do not wish to use any school facility or time for any religious function. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2005-09-06 14:36 |
| #2 I think yor wrong,Decon.If you are then this absolutly outrageous. |
| Posted by: raptor 2005-09-06 13:37 |
| #1 I think what the Suprem Court actually ruled on was Organized prayer, i.e. a prayer led by someone over the intercom or individual classroms being led in prayer by someone, where students are held captive to the praying is not legal. This is where the pro-prayer people and the anti-prayer people get it wrong. ANYONE can go off by themselves and say a prayer and a school not allowing them to do so is not following the law. Schools have closed for Christian religious holidays for many years, eg. Christmas and Easter although they are not celebrated as suchand are now called Winter Break and Spring Break. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2005-09-06 11:54 |