I've been raised in a time where you keep your religion under wraps at schools, students willingly and teachers forcibly. So it is no huge shock that things like this happen in our everyday life. But there always is a shock, always a part in me that is enraged. Why should this coach be ill-treated for praying? I mean, how can we say we live in the Land of the Free if we, the teachers, cannot legally pray in our schools? How is that freedom?
I do understand the other side though, the side that bans it from our public school systems. They support the argument that school is no place for religion, and by teachers standing up for their own religion it could potentially offend a student, or cause many arguments. That the main focus of school is for educational purposes, and not for such things like religion.
But this also has a catch. Schools are becoming more and more diverse, with race, beliefs, and even sexual orientation. So why are we so quick to hide religion? To ban prayer? To make it something taboo for students to do?
Another point to my argument is the first amendment itself, saying "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech..." It says that there shall be no law made against the exercise of religion, so why can't we? Prayer is a right that we have, should have, and will have.
Admin. "Highschool Football Coach Reportedly Banned For Postgame Prayer With Players." News Yab: The Inquisitr Information. 28 Oct. 2014. Web. 30 Oct. 2014.
I absolutely, positively agree with you. We say the Pledge of Allegiance everyday, where it specifically says, "under God." No students that I am aware of have been offended. They just simply do not state the Pledge of Allegiance every morning, and the surrounding students do not take it into consideration because they respect their fellow student's acts. There are civilized citizens who fight for our country everyday in order to ensure that we can do legalized actions in our lives, but the fact that a grown man was persecuted for praying in a public place is abominable. I strongly do not support the consequences this grown man had to encounter. It's just a simple prayer. It's not as if he was making a terroristic threat. It's very disgraceful that certain authorities have taken advantage of the law. Families in restaurants pray in public. When I was in daycare, we all prayed before lunch, but yet, none of these citizens are persecuted. So why specifically this man? I hope his charges will be revoked.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both you and Hima. The fact that this man was judged for a public prayer is ridiculous. As you mentioned in your article, topics at school vary from religious beliefs to sexual preference, yet this man is criticized for expressing his own religion. It's not as if he was trying to force his religion onto others, he was just simply praying for the safety of his team. Like Hima mentioned, people in a public restaurant say grace, but they're not scrutinized and people don't have anything to say or about them. I love the blog, and hope you keep up the great work!
ReplyDeleteYou made several interesting points. I agree with them all. I think that public school students should be able to exercise heir freedom of religion and speech. Persecuting them for praying for the safety of the players participating is not right. You made a good point in saying that the public school system frowns any suggestion in the classroom, and in this case the playing field. This is a great blog with some great concepts and opinions. Keep up the great work. .:))))))
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