If the Muslims are required to pray in a certain manner, it doesn't sound like "free" exercise to me. It sounds like our government is abetting the enforcement of Muslim laws in our schools.
And it sounds especially coercive to less devout Muslim students who do NOT want to participate in the prayers. Perhaps some of them were hoping to have real religious freedom in the US and now the other Muslim students will be keeping them in line, religiously speaking, because they will be able to report back to parents or Imams.
Do we really want to help an Imam enforce religious rules on students in our schools?
The Muslims really need to open their own schools to exercise their rights, like other religious groups in America do. The less devout Muslim students in the public schools should NOT feel intimidated by those that more strictly adhere to their faith.
Are you THAT unclear on what the phrase "free exercise" means in the context of the constitution? It means that you are free to practice your religion without governmental interference. If you have chosen to practice the Muslim faith, the government is not going to protect you from the tenets of the Muslim religion. It will, however, tell you that you don't have to be a Muslim. And it sounds especially coercive to less devout Muslim students who do NOT want to participate in the prayers. Perhaps some of them were hoping to have real religious freedom in the US and now the other Muslim students will be keeping them in line, religiously speaking, because they will be able to report back to parents or Imams.
It is no more coercive than offering a library. The fact that a school has a room full of books does not mean it is coercing students to go into that room and read those books. Entering the room is completely voluntary. If you don't want to go, don't. And if you don't go, who's going to know whether or not you're a muslim not following the rules. No one is taking attendance.
Do we really want to help an Imam enforce religious rules on students in our schools?
Again, it's not about enforcement. It's about opportunity. Without this room, those Muslim students who want to practice their religion do not have the opportunity to do so without disrupting the school day. The same is not true of the Christian religion.
The Muslims really need to open their own schools to exercise their rights, like other religious groups in America do. The less devout Muslim students in the public schools should NOT feel intimidated by those that more strictly adhere to their faith.
Many of do open their own schools, but that doesn't mean that the students should be exempt from attending public school. If a catholic student wants to go to private school, s/he is entitled to. S/he is also entitled to pray as long as s/he initiated it him/herself, doesn't not expect to hold an audience or use a public address system, and does not disrupt class.
This policy of allowing Muslim students a room to pray gives the Muslim student the same rights as that Catholic student and again, there is no ENFORCEMENT. No one takes attendence, no one keeps track. And if you don't want to go, no one notices.