Rhode Island high school student Jessica Ahlquist has taught her school officials a useful lesson on civics this week. The Cranston High School West student won her challenge to a large prayer mural displayed at the school with a federal judge ordering its removal as a violation of the separation of church and state.
U.S. District Court Judge Ronald R. Lagueux issued a 40-page ruling Wednesday but I have not been able to review it (and this morning it is still not on Lexis/Nexis).
In the complaint below, the ACLU details how Ahlquist tried to engage her friends but found few allies in her campaign to have the prayer removed. She was undeterred by the peer pressure and created a Facebook account to campaign for its removal.
When she learned that the School Committee had established a subcommittee to consider the Prayer, she mustered her courage and spoke against the Prayer at its meeting on November 30, 2011 (11/30/11 Min. at 10) (“But, as an atheist, I have the right to go to school and not feel discriminated against by the people who are praying there.”) “When [Plaintiff] said she was an atheist, someone in the room let out a small gasp and J –A- heard some quiet whispering. She felt they dismissed her beliefs and feelings, and made her feel entirely alone, causing her to wonder whether she was irrational for feeling the way she did. She also felt extremely nervous and unwelcome at this meeting.” (Pl. Int. # 5 at 8)
Plaintiff also spoke out against the Prayer at the Subcommittee meeting of February 22, 2011 (2/22/11 Min. at 7) and at the School Committee meeting of March 7, 2011 (3/7/11 Min. at 60 and video of entire proceedings, Pl. 19). At the February 22 subcommittee meeting, Plaintiff again was made to “feel very intimidated and nervous, as well as hated. Speaking was much more difficult that night because she felt that many of the people in the room were angry at her and disliked her personally for speaking out against the prayer.” (Pl. Int. #5 at 9) After the March 7, 2011 meeting and after she filed the law suit, Plaintiff received bullying and intimidating taunts, comments and threats at school, on her way home from school, and on-line. (Pl. Int. #5 5 at 10-14; JA Dep. at 40-44)
At a meeting on the issue, local board members publicly proclaimed their faith and the need for the religious statement. Committee member Traficante identified himself as “a person of faith” and noted that as a coach he made sure to start every game with a prayer with the team. He insisted on preserving the display as part of the “obligation as School Committee members to protect and defend the moral values of our students and that banner helps us to express that[.]” Chairperson Iannazzi’s went further to say that the country “was founded not on freedom from religion but freedom of religion. Each person has the ability to practice whatever religion they want. That does not mean that they have the freedom from religion being practiced.” Obviously, the federal court disagreed.
The school insisted on fighting this well-based challenge despite a long line of cases contradicting the positions of the school board. As the Court noted in Pleasant Grove City, Utah v. Summum, 555 U.S. 460 (2009), “[b]y accepting a privately donated monument and placing it on city property, a city engages in expressive conduct[.]” It further stressed that a permanent monument is, “by definition, a structure that is designed as a means of expression.”
This girl stood up to not just peers but politicians to fight for the values of separation of church and state. In doing so, she gave her friends a lesson in civic responsibility and gave her school board a lesson in constitutional values. At a time with separation principles under attack, Jessica added a case in the win column for a society where faith is a personal not a public priority.
Congratulations to the lawyers of the Rhode Island ACLU in this important victory and again to Jessica Ahlquist and her parents.
raff, we know one thing. She is not self-loathing and angry like that fellow.
Wow. This is a great story of courage. Great job Ms. Ahlquist. Maybe you can take over Justice Thomas’ job!
“Traficante identified himself as “a person of faith” and noted that as a coach he made sure to start every game with a prayer with the team.”
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I think I see another court challenge not too far away. Nothing like a state authority figure ramroding his view of religion down young people’s throats. Thanks, Coach Traficante, for the public admission of coercion.
Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe, 530 U.S. 290 (2000); Abington School District v. Schempp, 374 U.S. 203 (1963)
“Guess the American dream has always been founded on hegemony and greed.” (Oro Lee)
Good guess.
The Congregationalists (Pilgrims) also extorted payment to support the Congregational Church from anyone who lived within the boundary lines of their towns whether said person was a member of the church or not. (No separation of church and state there.) The money was usually collected as a tax to build or maintain the Church’s meeting hall and cemetery or as a “Minister’s Tax” to support the clergy.
” Non payment of the tax could have serious consequences as John Davis discovered when he found himself in “gaol.” A Committee from the Church was asked to look into the propriety of the General Court in discharging him. He was a Baptist and objected to supporting the “orthodox” (State supported) Church.” http://www.wtcongregationalchurch.org/history.shtml
“So, this atheist forces her warped belief system down everyone elses throat, by twarting the laws and twisting them to suit her own views.”
Barney,
I’m a Jew and this offends me. “Heavenly Father” is Christian terminology for God. Were my child in this school I would have supported this suit. Where in hell do you think you have the right to force your beliefs on my kid in a public school paid for with my tax dollars. You are clueless about the Constitution, our
Country’s history and even aspects of your own religion. All you’ve got is the self-confidence and bluster of someone who has heard a few talking points and thinks he knows something. It is alright for you to force your belief system down the throats of people who don’t share your beliefs, which is what this wall sign was doing. By your own words shall you be judged. You are a hypocrite.
I see lots of promise in the younger generation. Brava, indeed.
Frankly, using their reasoning, the county needs to provide the spaghetti and meatballs for our holy ritual to our diet, um……deity.
rAmen.
BTW, remember the Pilgrims — those folks of Plymouth Rock fame, the forefathers we revere for seeking freedom OF religion? Well, they already had freedom of religion back in the Netherlands, but so did all those folks of other faiths(damn Catholics, damn reformists, damn mystics). It was all those other religions which the Pilgrims wanted to be free FROM which prompted them to sail for America. And to make money — the trip was financed by a business venture interested in the fur trade.
Guess the American dream has always been founded on hegemony and greed.
Jessica Ahlquist has learned a very valuable lesson in character building and obviously knows how to make the hard choices. Atta girl!
OS – 8-{D
The fact is nobodies right to pray in school is being infringed. I can prove that by simply stating I am going to pray right now & any one of you who thinks you can stop me is free to try. . . . Ramen
OTOH – if I insist that you pray with me, or listen to me pray thats a different matter & the courts should stop that in civic locations.
“It is shameful that so many are completely clueless as to what “separation between church and state” means. The ORIGINAL INTENTION was to KEEP THE GOV’T OUT OF THE CHURCH BUSINESS.” (Barney Collier)
Oh Barney, Barney, Barney … you are about to get your pseudo-proverbial/intellectual ass kicked from here to hell and back. If your ignorance weren’t so damn dangerous to the rest of society, I’d almost feel sorry for you.
“The ACLU (which was formed by communists and atheists)” — I’m not sure of the truth of this statement but, taking it as a given, all I can say is “Thank God for communists and atheists.”
Barney “Fife” Collier — satirist extreme! Pure genius!
“Not to systematially remove all public displays and acknowledgements of God from everywhere.”
Fine with me. You know nothing of this “god” fellow. All you know is how to market a false gospel to fearful sheep. And you have it exactly backwards, as the court rightly found. Deal.
Barney
Your twisted view of the seperate roles of religion and government in the US is the reason we as citizens and as a country have legal and Constitutional protections from such religious zealotry. Your view is consistant with those of the governments of Iran or Saudi Arabia, not the United States of America.
Barney, you have it bass ackward. Your comment leaves me speechless for it’s total lack of understanding of the meaning of the First Amendment and keeping government out of religious affairs.
“But, as an atheist, I have the right to go to school and not feel discriminated against by the people who are praying there”
So, this atheist forces her warped belief system down everyone elses throat, by twarting the laws and twisting them to suit her own views. She taught them a useful lesson in civics? What’s that, how to twist and contort the laws to rape the justice system? Wow, what a lesson that is. It’s teaching us how so many are so ignorant of the true meaning of “separation of church and state”.
It is shameful that so many are completely clueless as to what “separation between church and state” means. The ORIGINAL INTENTION was to KEEP THE GOV’T OUT OF THE CHURCH BUSINESS. Not to systematially remove all public displays and acknowledgements of God from everywhere. When you go to the US Supreme Court, you will see displays of prayers, etc… This is hypocritical what the militant atheists have done to the justice system.
Hopefully the American Center for Law and Justice is already working on this. The ACLU (which was formed by communists and atheists) routinely twarts and rapes the justice system to suit its own distorted views and idiotic views of its “clients”.
Maybe one of the students there will ask this atheist student the dreaded “question”: “what proof and evidence do you have that proves atheism is accurate and correct?”
I went to the school web site and see the school motto is the Golden Rule. They really believe in practicing what they preach, y’think?
Cheers 4 Jessica! Smarter than the school board and her peers.
Congratulations, Jessica. And Thank You.
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