School district sued over evangelistic crusade

[Guest Jobber of the Week]

http://www.cnn.com/2003/EDUCATION/05/12/cr...t.ap/index.html

 

MAYNARDVILLE, Tennessee (AP) -- Every year, hundreds of Union County students take a field trip for the soul. Children are excused from class, loaded onto school buses with teachers and sent to a three-day Christian revival.

 

"I am going to ask you a question," an evangelical leader recently yelled to a sea of students ready for their field trip. "If you are glad to be here, say amen!"

 

With the ardor of a pep rally, the students shouted back: "AAAA-men!"

 

Not everyone is so enthusiastic.

 

Fourteen-year-old India Tracy said she was harassed and attacked by classmates for nearly three years after she declined to attend Baptist Pastor Gary Beeler's annual crusade because of her family's pagan religion.

 

Her family has filed a federal lawsuit against Union County schools, claiming the crusade, prayers over the loudspeaker, a Christmas nativity play, a Bible handout and other proselytizing activities in the rural school system have become so pervasive they are a threat to safety and religious liberty.

 

Union County officials say the system is neutral when it comes to religious activities, pointing out that the crusade is voluntary, teachers chaperone on their own time and school buses are operated by private contractors.

 

"We do not endorse, promote or prohibit it," said school spokesman Wayne Goforth.

 

District officials say the crusade, now in its sixth year, is like any other field trip, with parental permission required to let the children attend for two hours a day over three days. On the crusade's final day this year, April 30, more than 1,300 of the school system's 3,000 students attended.

 

"All local boards of education have the authority to allow students to voluntarily attend these types of events," said Christy Ballard, legal counsel to the Tennessee Department of Education.

 

But, she added, "it is very clear in the statute that they can't harass a student or coerce them to participate ... and, of course, they can't be school-sponsored."

 

Church and state

Charles Haynes, a senior scholar at the Freedom Forum's First Amendment Center in Arlington, Virginia, said school officials and Christian leaders in Union County need a "crash course on the meaning of the First Amendment -- especially the part that separates church from state."

 

 

India Tracy, 14, says she was harassed and attacked after declining to attend a Christian revival because of her family's pagan religion.

Beeler, 63, who lives and preaches in Union County, said he has been contacted by communities around the country wanting to set up similar crusades, and sees nothing wrong with children getting time off from school to attend them.

 

"The principals, the teachers, the bus drivers all have told us that they have less behavior problems after this crusade than they do before. So that tells us the positive effect," he said.

 

India said she was called "Satan worshipper" and accused of eating babies when it was revealed she was a pagan. She said she was taunted, found slurs painted over her locker and was injured when classmates assaulted her and slammed her head into the locker.

 

The lawsuit said school officials took no disciplinary action. In a May 2 legal response, school officials said they acted appropriately, denied the attacks happened, or said they were unaware of them.

 

Paganism is an ancient religious tradition that embraces kinship with nature, positive morality and the idea that there is both a female and male side of Deity.

 

After Christmas break in early 2002, India said three boys chased her down a hall at Horace Maynard Middle School, grabbed her by the neck and said, "You better change your religion or we'll change it for you."

 

She broke free and fled into the girls' bathroom. A teacher stopped the boys from following her, the lawsuit said.

 

"That was pretty much the last straw because she was terrified," said India's father, Greg Tracy.

 

The Tracys took India out of school on February 26, 2002.

 

A straight-A student, she belonged to the leadership-service organization Beta Club, chess club, and band. She was the only girl on the middle school football team.

 

Now she takes Internet courses at home and hopes to transfer to a public school in Knoxville, 25 miles away.

 

"When was it too hard? I don't know," India said. "On a couple of occasions it was too hard and then it got easier and then it started getting bad again and I would come home bawling my eyes out."

 

 

Hmmm hmmm hmmm......

[Guest SP-1]

Stupid, stupid, stupid. The kids harrassing her need to have a lesson in Grace and a real breakdown of Christ's message.

[Guest Spicy McHaggis]

Union County officials say the system is neutral when it comes to religious activities, pointing out that the crusade is voluntary, teachers chaperone on their own time and school buses are operated by private contractors.

This is where the issue stops.

[Guest DrTom]

The examples of why I have absolutely no use for organized religion keep piling up. For something that's supposed to unite people, it certainly does a piss-poor job of it.

[Guest Spicy McHaggis]

The examples of why I have absolutely no use for organized religion keep piling up. For something that's supposed to unite people, it certainly does a piss-poor job of it.

I disagree simply because organized religion itself isn't divisive. It's the moronic followers making horrible decisions.

[Guest Jobber of the Week]

This is where the issue stops.

You sure about that?

 

...prayers over the loudspeaker, a Christmas nativity play, a Bible handout and other proselytizing activities in the rural school system

[Guest DrTom]

I disagree simply because organized religion itself isn't divisive. It's the moronic followers making horrible decisions.

Haven't we gone down this road before?

 

Anyway, religion, as a man-made institution, is absolutely responsible for the sins men commit in its name.

[Guest KingOfOldSchool]

India said she was called "Satan worshipper" and accused of eating babies when it was revealed she was a pagan. She said she was taunted, found slurs painted over her locker and was injured when classmates assaulted her and slammed her head into the locker.

 

After Christmas break in early 2002, India said three boys chased her down a hall at Horace Maynard Middle School, grabbed her by the neck and said, "You better change your religion or we'll change it for you."

 

How Christian

[Guest Cancer Marney]

Indeed it is. Ample precedent throughout history and the Bible.

[Guest Vyce]

Damn, I guess all Christians are evil then, huh.

 

Ho hum.

 

SHOCK~! POSTING!!!!

[Guest Galactic Gigolo]

"You better change your religion or I'll change it for you."

 

Considering that the Supreme Court ruled bible passages being read over the loud speaker unconstitutional, I'm shocked this is still happening.

 

: : looks at the state : :

 

Ohh, I see.

 

And on another note, the Pagan religion? I hate them all, but... Pagan?

[Guest Spicy McHaggis]

I disagree simply because organized religion itself isn't divisive. It's the moronic followers making horrible decisions.

Haven't we gone down this road before?

 

Anyway, religion, as a man-made institution, is absolutely responsible for the sins men commit in its name.

We've both been on this board long enough to know how we would react to a thread like this. I know there's no amount of convincing I can do to change your viewpoint. All I can say is I disagree on this particular subject.

[Guest Vyce]

"You better change your religion or I'll change it for you."

 

Considering that the Supreme Court ruled bible passages being read over the loud speaker unconstitutional, I'm shocked this is still happening.

 

: : looks at the state : :

 

Ohh, I see.

 

And on another note, the Pagan religion? I hate them all, but... Pagan?

There's a Pagan at my school. She says she used to worship the goddess Bastet naked in the woods back home in rural upper New York state. She's dead serious.

 

She also happens to be a proud Marxist who has argued passionately that Castro really isn't such a bad guy.

 

My recent favorite of her little rants was about how Abu Abbazz (sp?), the recent Palestinian terrorist we caught in Iraq, really isn't a terrorist after all and Israel fabricated all of the evidence against him. She LITERALLY said that he was never on that cruise ship (don't even make me attempt to spell the name), and in fact never killed that elderly Jewish man in the wheelchair.

 

She believes all of these things. Frankly, she frightens me.

[Guest EricMM]

Um just to clarify something, I don't think that they held this 'field trip' in the actual school.

 

When it makes reference to bible passages read over the loud speaker, I tend to think of some sort of amplification system.

 

It just doesn't sound like they were in school when this was happening although I could be wrong. Maybe they said a passage over the PA to hype this event, which I don't think is THAT big a deal...

[Guest CoreyLazarus416]

Albeit far from me to ever denounce religion, **cough, cough**, I have no arguments with an independently-sponsored religious gathering advertised at a public school. If there was a Pagan gathering, and the school refused to advertise that, then I'd have an issue. However, there doesn't seem to be one in the area. So, basically, advertising an independently-sponsored event that students might be interested in, only if the content of said event is not of an obscene nature (ie. a "God Hates Fags" rally), is okay with me.

 

And those kids that have a problem with her? I wish them all very high amounts of physical pain to their rectums. No, I'm not talking about anal sex, or anal rape. People pierce everything nowadays, don't they?

[Guest Kid Kablam]

I disagree simply because organized religion itself isn't divisive. It's the moronic followers making horrible decisions.

Haven't we gone down this road before?

 

Anyway, religion, as a man-made institution, is absolutely responsible for the sins men commit in its name.

I have always felt that like any institution, religion can be used correctly, or be abused. I have seen the abuse as well as the positive use, and I can safely say that I feel that orgavized religion, by itself is not a bad thing. The only problem is that there is mentality, and this is human nature, that one religion is correct. Different religions should not only be tolerated, but embraced because different ways of worship apeal to different people. Certain personalities gravitate towards certain forms of worship, and therefore their choice should be embraced.

[Guest Ravenbomb]

religious idiots...or just idiots in general

 

sure, it didn't bring anything of use to the conversation, but any point I could make has been made already.

 

Incidentally, I don't think churches should have commercials of any sort. Doesn't seem right somehow to me

[Guest Renegade]

Stupid ignorant fucks.

[Guest evenflowDDT]

Le sigh. I have no problems with the event taking place because, despite the high attendance, it doesn't appear to be school-sanctioned, just advertised there (kinda like a Senior Trip or a school club trip), although I disagree with the excusing from class.

 

I do, however, have a major problem with the religious intolerance exhibited by the school-children. I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and hope they grow out of it, as everyone (hopefully) grows in their lives, but it's still saddening to hear, especially since, as SP could tell you much better than me, such intolerance is completely against Christ's teachings.

[Guest Vern Gagne]

Intolerance at what level? Excepting all people who believe Jesus Christ was the son of God, or intolerance of people who aren't believers?

[Guest SP-1]

There's a general nastiness exhibited towards Christians no matter where you go. Unfortunately there are dumbass zealots on our side as well that seem to forget alot of what Jesus talked about, and tend to ignore a screaming, I'm sure, Holy Spirit's urgings now.

[Guest CoreyLazarus416]

SP, that's why I could best be described as an "Atheist For Jesus." Anybody remember that site?

 

Jesus was a cool guy. A VERY cool guy. He saw that what was going on wasn't cool, all these people not being groovy to each other and all, and wanted to end it. He accepted his fate, and took it all like a man, knowing that the human nature of greed is far too great for some (Judas).

 

...I got off on a weird rant there, but whatever. Yay Jesus the philosopher!