Ind. High School Student Who Complained About Coercive Prayer Told To Be More Cooperative [View all]
Americans United blog
Blame The Victim Much?: Ind. High School Student Who Complained About Coercive Prayer Told To Be More Cooperative
It is apparent that the entire bureaucracy at River Forest is actively excluding anyone who is not Christian. There seem to be multiple constitutional violations occurring there frequently – and it seems the school has no tolerance for anyone who won’t fall in line.
When the parents of an Indiana high school sophomore complained that their son was subjected to coercive prayers at multiple school events, officials were less than sympathetic to the family’s First Amendment concerns.
To say the family’s protest fell on deaf ears would be far too generous. In fact, one school administrator went so far as to blame the student for not accepting the sectarian messages in silence.
Jim and Nichole Bellar’s son, known as “J.B” in court documents, said in a lawsuit filed this week by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana that multiple coaches at River Forest Junior/Senior High School lead their teams in prayer before most practices and games. Jesus and God are typically mentioned.
When J.B. brought his concern about the sectarian activity to his coaches, they didn’t seem to care. He was simply told to be quiet during invocations, the lawsuit alleges.
The situation only worsened when the Bellars met with school administrators, who suggested that J.B. make an effort to be more cooperative with his coaches.
According to the lawsuit, the Bellars’ daughter, who has since graduated, had a similar experience when she played sports at River Forest.
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https://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/blame-the-victim-much-ind-high-school-student-who-complained-about-coercive
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