Posted on 10/20/2005 9:22:00 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - An attorney for two seventh-graders and their families argued to a federal appeals court that a Contra Costa County school district violated the students' rights by forcing them to adopt Muslim names and recite Islamic prayers in a roleplaying exercise.
"The children were supposed to become Muslims. They were acting as a Muslim would act," attorney Edward White of the Thomas More Law Center, a Christian defense organization, told a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco on Wednesday.
The families were appealing a 2003 ruling by a federal judge that the exercise was a permissible part of a history class, not indoctrination.
White argued that the exercise went too far and should be considered an unconstitutional endorsement of religion. He objected to students being told to wear name tags with religious symbols, a student-made classroom banner that praised Allah, and a requirement that students memorize and recite a passage from the Quran.
Attorneys for the Byron Union School District said the teacher was trying to instruct the students about Islam.
"There was nothing sacred or worshipful about any of the activities," attorney Linda Lye said.
Lye said students were asked to recite a line from a religious text, but did not kneel on prayer rugs or do anything else to suggest a solemn occasion.
The judges appeared inclined to side with the school, with Judge Dorothy Nelson saying the role-playing was designed "to make the historical lesson come alive."
Judges Johnnie Rawlinson and Carlos Bea compared the exercise to an earlier suit that challenged role-playing about witches, which the appeals court ruled permissible in 1994.
"Tonight I wear the burka!"
i'm in my early 40's. i remember knowing more about Islam from 6th grade "social studies" than I did about Catholicism from CCD.
Tonight, it's off with someone's head.
"The children were supposed to become Muslims. They were acting as a Muslim would act,"
_______________________________________________________
Sawing off heads?
Next week, honor killing.
..the role-playing was designed "to make the historical lesson come alive."
Yikes!
Did they remember to role-play torture and chopping off their fellow students' heads? Don't forget to send the little ones off on a jihad with their very own AK-47s, and bomb belts. One must give them an accurate portrayal of Islam, right? All aspects of it, so that they have a well-rounded education about the Muslim religion, that's if any of the kids have heads left to learn with, after they are lopped off by their fellow little jihadists. I'm sure their history instructor, role-playing Zarqawi, will be pleased.
The week after, fun with goats. No, never mind that one.
>>
The week after, fun with goats. No, never mind that one.
<<
Oh, that's baaaaaaad.
Yeah - Right!
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - An attorney for two seventh-graders and their families argued to a federal appeals court that a Contra Costa County school district violated the students' rights by forcing them to adopt Christian names and recite Christian prayers in a roleplaying exercise.
"The children were supposed to become Christians. They were acting as a Christian would act," attorney Edward White of the Thomas More Law Center, a Muslim defense organization, told a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco on Wednesday.
The families were appealing a 2003 ruling by a federal judge that the exercise was a permissible part of a history class, not indoctrination.
White argued that the exercise went too far and should be considered an unconstitutional endorsement of religion. He objected to students being told to wear name tags with religious symbols, a student-made classroom banner that praised Christ, and a requirement that students memorize and recite a passage from the New Testament.
Attorneys for the Byron Union School District said the teacher was trying to instruct the students about Chritianity.
"There was nothing sacred or worshipful about any of the activities," attorney Linda Lye said.
Lye said students were asked to recite a line from a religious text, but did not take holly cummunion or do anything else to suggest a solemn occasion.
The judges appeared inclined to side with the school, with Judge Dorothy Nelson saying the role-playing was designed "to make the historical lesson come alive."
Judges Johnnie Rawlinson and Carlos Bea compared the exercise to an earlier suit that challenged role-playing about witches, which the appeals court ruled permissible in 1994.
White argued that the exercise went too far and should be considered an unconstitutional endorsement of religion. He objected to students being told to wear name tags with religious symbols, a student-made classroom banner that praised Allah, and a requirement that students memorize and recite a passage from the Quran.... with those in this story:Attorneys for the Byron Union School District said the teacher was trying to instruct the students about Islam.
"There was nothing sacred or worshipful about any of the activities," attorney Linda Lye said.
Antonio Peck, who attended Catherine McNamara Elementary School in Baldwinsville, N.Y., as a kindergarten student during the 1999-2000 school year, included an image of Jesus and other religious elements in a poster [which was displayed for a few hours on a cafeteria wall, along with 80 other student posters] created in fulfillment of a homework assignment on the environment.The student reportedly was expressing his belief that God was the only way to save the environment.
School officials rejected one version of the poster and then obscured a portion of the second version (which depicted a robed, praying figure of Jesus, a church with a cross, people picking up trash for recycling, children holding hands around a globe, clouds, trees, a squirrel and grass) when it was placed on display at an assembly, citing concerns over its "religious" nature.
The fact is that according to Islam, merely uttering Islamic prayers, however cynically, places a person subject to Sharia law for life. These school offals are playing with fire and couldn't care less.
So the judges equate Muzzie role-playing with witch role-playing. How about some Nazi role-playing? To make the historical lesson come alive? F**king morons.
Incredible! It's a 1-1 correspondence!
Great work FreedomCalls!
If I were a Muslim, I'd be really ticked. How *dare* they take sacred Muslim prayers and call them "nothing sacred or worshipful"?
And if you put the shoe on the other foot and *admit* that after all, a prayer is a prayer is a prayer, Muslim or not, then how can they countenance reciting Muslim prayers in school when they'd rather eat a live cricket than endorse Christian prayers in school? (As others in this thread have already noted.)
The school should just fall on their sword and admit they screwed up. Trying to rationalize their way out of this one isn't going to work.
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