A federal appeals court has forbidden children as young as 4 to give gifts bearing religious messages like "Jesus loves the little children" to their classmates during classroom activities.
A three-judge panel of the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Pennsylvania and New Jersey, found late last month that such gifts represent "student advocacy," according to its decision in a case brought by the parents of a 9-year-old boy against the Egg Harbor Township (N.J.) Board of Education.
Daniel Walz, then 4, touched off the controversy in spring 1998 when he brought pencils emblazoned with the message "Jesus loves the little children" — a heart symbol actually stood in for "loves" — to an Easter party in his pre-kindergarten class. His teacher confiscated the pencils and reported Daniel to the principal; Daniel's parents later sued, alleging violation of his right to free speech.
A Camden, N.J., U.S. District Court judge ruled against the Walzes in February 2002; the 3rd Circuit panel affirmed that ruling this past Aug. 27.
"This decision is probably one of the worst I've ever read," said John Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute, which is representing the Walzes. "What they're saying to schools in the 3rd Circuit is that you have total control and kids have no freedom at all."
The decision, Whitehead added, is at odds with the U.S. Supreme Court's precedent-setting 1962 Tinker v. Des Moines Community School District ruling, which famously found that public school students "do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gates." In that case, the court ruled, in order to deny a student's free speech rights, a school "must be able to show that its action was caused by something more than a mere desire to avoid the discomfort and unpleasantness that always accompany an unpopular viewpoint."
"The only disruption here," Whitehead pointed out, "was the teacher who blocked (Daniel from handing out his pencils)."
The 3rd Circuit acknowledged the protections of the Tinker decision in its ruling, but found that they didn't apply to Daniel's gifts. In pointing out other examples where "a school's need to control student behavior will necessarily result in limitations on student speech," Chief Judge Anthony J. Scirica noted that "a quiet reading period necessarily requires silence."
Whitehead, who plans an appeal to the full 3rd Circuit and to the U.S. Supreme Court if necessary, said that in addition to tyrannically stifling free speech, the 3rd Circuit has taught "a real bad lesson in political science to children."
"In the schools kids should learn about the Constitution and freedom and rights so that when they go out in life they believe that and practice that and support other people in that," he told CitizenLink. "If you're taught in schools that you have absolutely no rights, there's no telling the kind of negative impact that will have in the future."
And that's why parents must not allow their children to get that message from this decision, according to Eric Buehrer, president of Gateways to Better Education, a national organization that helps students and educators better understand and appreciate the contributions of Christianity to society and the world.
Until the courts reach a final resolution in the Walz case, Buehrer said, there is much parents can do to expose their children's classrooms to biblical truths.
"The courts have already ruled on the appropriateness to come in and read kids the Christmas story or the Easter story," he explained. "Good News (Bible) clubs can get started after school — that's been settled by the Supreme Court, too.
"So this is not a hopeless situation. There are opportunities for Christian families to continue to make a difference."
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Gateways to Better Education has launched a project called "Tending the Garden of Your School" for parents seeking tips on how to bring a Christian influence to their child's school. To learn more, visit the organization's Web site.
(NOTE: Referral to Web sites not produced by Focus on the Family is for informational purposes only and does not necessarily constitute an endorsement of the sites' content.)
