Religion in Public Schools

Religion is a very controversial topic that many people have different views on. Most people have a strong opinion either for or against it. Whichever opinion they have, it’s a good chance they passionate about it. Because of this most schools are against teachers, and sometimes students, expressing their opinions on such a controversial subject.

The Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 states that employers must allow their workers to fulfill their reasonable religious practices, as long as it doesn't interfere with the job. This can really conflict with the U.S. Constitution's Establishment Clause. That clause keeps public schools from allowing teachers from advocating a particular belief in front of students.

The conflicting elements of these can make it difficult to enforce rules regarding religion because of the balance that needs to take place.

It can be hard to figure out what is acceptable and what isn't. Schools are allowed to talk about the history of religion, in fact in most schools it's a standard. Nearly every school agrees that books like the Bible and the Torah have had a huge impact on the world. However, showing devotion or a singular truth of a sacred document is not permitted.

It is hard to know not to cross the line because sometimes it isn't always clear where the line is. A lot of times people need to make their best guesses on what is acceptable and what isn't.

There has been a recent case in North Carolina recently that has helped to have a new law passed specifying what is accepted in public schools. A 6 year old girl in an elementary school was told to remove the word "God" from a poem for Veterans Day. She wrote "He prayed to God for peace, he prayed to God for strength". She wrote this referring to her grandfather, a Vietnam veteran.

This new law helps to clarify just what can be done by public schools and what can't. There will always be blurred lines in this situation but at least this provides some structure.