An optional Bible class at Michigan Elementary School was canceled after complaints.
A public school in Michigan canceled an off-site Bible class after a parent complained, yet
school administrators are reviewing the study for possible reinstatement.
Children at Daisy Brook Elementary School, a public grade school in Vermont, Michigan,
no longer have the option to attend a Bible Release Time class held at the local Vermont
Wesleyan Church.
This set off an uproar among parents who had enrolled their children in the class.
One parent said, I don't agree with it because I don't believe it is a violation of the First
Amendment.
They said, it's not on school property.
Parents have to sign their kids.
It's completely optional.
The Michigan Association of Civil Rights activists wrote a complaint letter to school officials
saying the Bible class must go.
Bible Release Time is a program permitted by Michigan law whereby children are released
from school classes during school hours to attend religious instruction at a nearby location.
A school van picks up the children from school to take them to the church where the pastor
leads the study.
The class was to be held once a month during the noon hour, according to the flyer, and
parents had to give permission for children to attend.
The Bible class is clearly designed to promote and support one particular religion, pastor
and church, and is thus an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.
The Michigan Association of Civil Rights activists wrote in a Facebook post on May 17th, such
programs are discriminatory and violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment
to the Constitution of the United States.
Well, the First Amendment says it's freedom of religion.
So if the children want to go to the class, they shouldn't be denied that right.
In Michigan, public school students are allowed two hours per week to attend religious instruction
outside of school.
One parent said, just because other religions don't offer this kind of thing at school,
it is unfair to take it away from the Christian religion.
They said, I brought my kids up in a Christian family my whole life, and I'd like to continue
that.
The school district superintendent, Ken Haggart, said it was recommended by school attorneys
to discontinue the program for the remainder of the year, allowing us to take time to make
sure things are done correctly.
So let me know what you think about this in the comments below.
And you know, I just wonder how this situation would be if this was not a Bible class, but
some kind of, for another religion like the Jewish or Islamic class or something like
that, if it would be canceled in the same way.
So let me know what you think about this in the comments below.
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