Written by Don Byrd
The Florida State Senate passed a bill 31-8 that authorizes school districts to allow students the right to offer prayer at school events so long as school officials and other adults are not involved.
Its approval came over the objections of senators who said the measure will lead to prayers at school events that students can’t get out of, including possibly in classes, and that some young students will have to listen to prayers or risk being ostracized because they come from a different religious tradition than most of their classmates.
At least one lawmaker, however, foresees potential difficulty in this Lord-of-the-Flies approach to student religious freedom:
One supporter of the proposal, Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, while speaking in favor of the bill, warned his colleagues that in order to support the measure they had to accept the notion that those messages may not always be a Christian prayer, or even a Jewish one. With adults not allowed to tell students what they can or can’t say – some messages could be unsettling.
“At a graduation ceremony a student might stand up and say I give my thanks to Allah, and let me explain why,” said Gaetz. “A student might stand up and say I’m a Wiccan and let me explain why. We have to be prepared for the full expression of religion and I am.”
The bill moves to the House, where it is expected to pass. Students are already allowed to pray on their own in school. What does this bill accomplish, apart from potentially encouraging some students to use this right in a coercive or bullying manner over other students? Will school officials be allowed to step in, in such an instance, if this bill is law? Can school officials allow explicit time for religious expression to a captive audience, at graduation or other required school assemblies?
It sounds like this approach raises more questions than it answers, and causes more problems than it solves.
