Should We Pray at Graduation?
May 11, 2010 | Natalie
Separation of church and state – we’ve heard it before. Especially in public high schools, administrations usually try to keep any blatant display of religious affiliation as taboo.
Or was that just my school?
Apparently, because it turns out Greenwood High School in Indiana has been having student-led prayers at graduation for years. It used to be mandatory, but for the past couple decades the administration has the senior class vote on whether or not to have a prayer – led my a non-denominational person – read at graduation. In all of the voting history, the majority wrote “YES” to a prayer.
This year things changed. Greenwood’s valedictorian, Eric Workman, “filed a lawsuit objecting to both the proposed religious exercise and to the school’s voting policy.” The federal district judge ruled in his favor and prohibited the school from reading a prayer.
In a public system where I wasn’t even sure I could read the Bible as I went through school, this case surprised me. I understand private institutions holding prayers – it’s their own money – but for state funded schooling what ever happened to separation of church and state?
“Greenwood’s graduation prayer practice,” wrote the judge who ruled on the case ‘is invalid on its face because it establishes an improper majoritarian election on religion, and unquestionably has the purpose and creates the perception of encouraging the delivery of prayer. Under the circumstances of this case, were a prayer to be permitted at the upcoming Greenwood graduation ceremony, it would likely be perceived as a public expression of the views of the majority of the student body delivered with the approval of the school administration.”
Prayer in schools has come up time and time again as a heated controversial issue. To quote the First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech.” While the Constitution clearly outlines that there cannot be a law that establishes religion it also guarantees the freedom of speech. So is a graduation prayer establishing religious affiliation or is it a majority vote on freedom of speech?
In the 1992 Supreme Court Case Lee v. Weisman, the Court ruled that “employees of a public school district may not induce, endorse, assist, nor promote prayer at their graduation ceremonies.” However this did not answer the questions of whether student-led prayers are constitutional and if the ruling applies to more than just public schools.
A democracy is based on the will of the majority. But in the case of prayer, is the will of the majority – to say thanks to God on their graduation day – infringing on other students rights to maintain freedom of religion and separation of church and state?
To broaden the scope, let’s look an everyday mention of religion in most public schools: The Pledge of Allegiance. “One Nation, Under God” millions of kids recite every morning after the announcements.
According to the Encyclopedia of Everyday Law “thirty-two states mention some form of school participation [of the Pledge] in their laws, while twenty states require students to recite it. Enforcement of the laws was irregular or non-existent, however, as the Christian Science Monitor observed in March 2001. Following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks upon the United States, outpourings of patriotism and strong renewed interest in having students recite the pledge pushed the issue back to the forefront, with some governments declaring they would use old laws and others vowing to pass new ones.”
A Letter to the Editor regarding the ruling for Greenwood High in Indiana reprimanded the law for its ruling. Dan Hall wrote, “If prayer is not allowed in public schools, why is religious music allowed to be sung at public school choir performances and state competitions? This also should be a violation of the Constitution’s separation of church and state. This is more of a violation than students wanting prayer at their graduation because the choir music is chosen by a public school teacher and approved by the administration.”
And we’re back to the cumbersome question: Does the majority vote outweigh separation of church and state? Is reciting a prayer a practice of the First Amendment rather than a violation?
I won’t be shy to interject my own opinion.
While I am a Christian, I’m more of a Humanist. Greenwood High School treated their students based on the majority, instead of respecting the students as individuals. The minority was therefore forced into a potential uncomfortable religious situation at one of the most memorable events of their life.
What do you think of this case? Should public high schools be permitted to read prayers at graduation with a majority vote? Is that democracy or a neglect of student rights? And what about replacing these “prayers” with a moment of silence to allow those who wish to pray the moment to do so, and others to reflect on their accomplishments?
