'Jesus ... Loves ... You' ... Hey! Get That Outta Here!
by Allie Martin
November 7, 2003
(AgapePress) - A California school district may soon find itself in federal court after officials told Christian students they could not express their religious beliefs in a senior-class photo.Recently the senior class at Fountain Valley High School gathered for a group photo for the student yearbook. Several Christian students decided to wear T-shirts to the photo shoot with large individual words and symbols on them that, when placed together, expressed messages such as "Jesus is the Way" and "Jesus Loves You." However, the students were told by school officials that they could not express any kind of religious message in the photo. They were forced to step out of the photo because of their shirts.
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Brad Dacus |
Brad Dacus of the Pacific Justice Institute feels the school officials censored the religious expression of the students who were not able to be in the senior photo. He says they were excluded because of their Christian message, even though the law makes "a clear distinction between state speech -- the speech of the administrators and the school -- and the speech of students which is clearly protected by the Constitution."Dacus notes that Fountain Valley High administrators did not exclude several students who wore clothes with visible "name brands" or logos. Nor did the school interfere with Muslim students who wore headscarves for the photo. But the students who wanted to express their faith by participating in a group Christian message were not allowed to do so.
According to the attorney, the Pacific Justice Institute responded to "this outrageous discrimination" by sending a legal opinion and demand letter to Fountain Valley High School officials, explaining how they were violating the Constitution and the rights of the students.
"We're hopeful that the high school will do the right thing and reverse its position," Dacus says. However, what began as a simple photo shoot now threatens to turn into a federal lawsuit for the California school.
