Free speech and religion often clash. This is especially true in school when the curricula aim to support children of all types of nationalities, backgrounds, and beliefs. Critical race theory and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies make that goal difficult, to say the least. When is it okay to teach same sex marriage to children or pray at school? Are the two interchangeable? One Tennessee teacher put the issue to the test by refusing to read an LGBTQ-themed book in his class – and he won. The district initially punished him, but he has since been vindicated.
Teacher’s Record Cleared
Eric Rivera, a first-grade teacher at Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) Antioch College Prep Elementary School in Nashville, TN, probably thought he was doing the right thing when he had a colleague read a mandated book to his class. Rivera, a deeply religious man, did not feel comfortable reading a book about a same sex couple and their daughter. Even though the book was read to the young children, the administrators still sent him a “final warning letter” for not following the school’s concept of “worldview.”
That is when First Liberty Institute, a non-profit public interest law firm and the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans, as they describe themselves on their website, became involved. “However, after the book had already been read to the students, the principal called Eric into her office and threatened to fire him should he not forfeit his beliefs and agree to teach all books in the curriculum regardless of his convictions,” a spokesperson for First Liberty said. “He was told he must ‘maintain fidelity’ with the school’s worldview.”
Rivera sought a religious accommodation, but First Liberty said he was reassigned instead. The school came around, cleared the teacher’s record, and stated that other teachers can now have their colleagues read books that they feel uncomfortable teaching in their classrooms. “Our client is deeply devoted to teaching and is grateful that his record has been cleared and reasonable accommodations will be provided going forward,” said Cliff Martin, the senior counsel at the agency.
Free Speech and Religion in Schools
Also in Tennessee, a dad wanted to start a faith-based athletics club where students would be able to pray and encourage each other, but the principal put the request on hold while he sought guidance from the Board of Education. First Liberty stepped in here, too, with attorney Holly Randall saying: “We appreciate the district’s commitment to following the law. Federal and state law, along with both constitutions, clearly protect students’ rights to form religious clubs.”
Free speech and religion rights are being violated, the agency warned in a letter. “It is a fundamental principle of the First Amendment that students do not shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate.”
In Bremerton, WA, a coach was fired for praying on the 50-yard line after his team’s football games. Joseph Kennedy fought that action and won, with six of the nine Supreme Court justices agreeing that he was protected by the First Amendment.
Staci Barber, a teacher at Cardiff Junior High in Katy, Texas, filed a suit against the school for violating her free speech and religious rights. She started a campus chapter of Students for Christ, but the principal, Bryan Round, said, "Katy does not have religious clubs and that Cardiff was not allowed to have any religious clubs per Katy ISD."
Although she complied with the request, she was later chastised after she and two fellow teachers participated in the “See You at the Pole” annual event where teachers and students gather at a flagpole before school starts and pray. She had been participating in the event for the past eight years, but this was the first time she was reprimanded. According to the lawsuit, the principal “behaved in a hostile fashion” and later told her in an email that, “…employees CANNOT pray with or in the presence of students. You cannot have a student group AND staff group both praying at the pole as this would be a violation of Board policy.” He continued, “Even though it is before the school day, you are on campus visible to students in your role as an employee.”
In Connecticut, a middle school teacher refused to take down a crucifix she’d displayed on her wall near her desk for a decade. A lawsuit against the Consolidated School District of New Britain accuses the administrators of using the First Amendment’s establishment clause that bars government from establishing a religion “as an excuse to abridge the free speech and religious free exercise rights” of the teacher.
The battle over free speech and religion in schools only became more complex as DEI and LGQBT policies were instituted and then challenged. When is it okay to display a rainbow flag or have a group prayer? The line between the First Amendment, faith-based actions, and lifestyle choices continues to blur.
