Video: Valedictorian silenced after mentioning God, faith

Hotair ^ | 06/10/2013 | Ed Morrissey

[lastchance]

Did the school make him include those remarks? If the school permits students to recount personal anecdotes in their speeches they can not exclude personal anecdotes that mention the student’s personal faith experience. The school messed up.

[Northern Yankee]

I hope these censors were wearing their brown shirts at graduation.

[no-to-illegals]

zer0 crowd!

[fwdude]

These kids need to bring their own covert amplifier with them and just switch over when the Communists engage in the censoring. Let the Gaystapo goons come tackle the kid. They’ll get their arses kicked.

[5thGenTexan]

In my wife's graduation ceremony (she is a HS Principal), one student led us in both the US and Texas pledges, another said an opening prayer, another closed with one, and both Valedictorian and Salutatorian spoke of their faith when talking about their education journey.

Before we did the US and Texas pledges, she stated "on our campus, we start each day with both these pledges and a moment of silence." The crowded applauded as they rose to their feet.

[DaveA37]

Cordless mics work real well for situations like this. Too bad he didn’t have one and a small amp to go with it.

I would bet if he were a muzzie they would not have done a damn thing and applauded when he concluded his remarks. (”Good for he but not for thee”)

[fwdude]

I would bet if he were a muzzie they would not have done a damn thing...

Don't know know it. Of if he started praising the "geh."

[Wiser now]

Seems to me if the ceremony doesn’t take place on school grounds, and many do not, and the kid already has his diploma, so he is not representing the school at that point, but himself, the ACLU and the brats at the “Freedom From Religion” group should be told to go to hell.
This is not a legitimate Constitutional issue, it is religious persecution of Christians by atheists.

[Leaning Right]

I actually don't know what to make of this. I applaud the young man's faith. But it's certainly not his "constitutional right" to say whatever he wants to in venues such as this.

If someone thinks that it is, then why couldn't a valedictorian give a speech about how marijuana clears the mind, or how Republican policies are hurting his country's future?

[fwdude]

This is shocking coming from Joshua, a very conservative town in a very conservative county south of DFW. Even small-town school districts apparently aren’t immune from an infestation of godless Leftists.

[ConservativeInPA]

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

[SeekAndFind]

RE: This is shocking coming from Joshua, a very conservative town in a very conservative county south of DFW.

This is a wake-up call to every conservative American. THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN INFILTRATED BY LEFTISTS.

If we are not vigilant, we might just wake up to find that we have lost this country.

[Gay State Conservative]

They wouldn’t dare silence some young punk spewing all that garbage about the Religion of “Peace”.In fact I’d wager that they wouldn’t even *want* to silence such a punk.

[i_robot73]

Easy fix, as he has as much Right as anyone else:

Move the speeches to the end. Don’t like what is being said, you can go, the graduation is over.

[SeekAndFind]

RE: . But it’s certainly not his “constitutional right” to say whatever he wants to in venues such as this.
If someone thinks that it is, then why couldn’t a valedictorian give a speech about how marijuana clears the mind, or how Republican policies are hurting his country’s future?

Well, let’s see what we can make of this ... What if the school bans him from thanking his parents or his mentors outside school or some Republican or Democratic politician who influenced him to do well, would that not be a violation of his constitutional right?

Now regarding this — marijuana clears the mind, or how Republican policies are hurting his country’s future — I say YES, it is His constitutional right to say ANYTHING foolish and repugnant as well. And we also have our constitutional right as listeners to BOO him and attack his speech and ideas if he espouses them.

The way to fight speech we don’t like in this country is not to silence the speech, it is to encourage MORE SPEECH, NOT LESS.

[SeaHawkFan]

Moved to Texas four years ago. To be honest, the Texas pledge is pretty lame.

[Sopater]

Here’s another reason to homeschool...

[Timber Rattler]

The stupid school administrators made this young man’s point for him.

[montag813]

I hope he YELLED the rest of his speech, once deprived of a microphone. I would have made them call the police to drag my ass off. The PARENTS paid for that damn school, not the fascist administrators.