Seven Religious Liberties Every Student Needs to Know About

This month Family Research Council published a list of seven religious liberties everyone needs to know that public school students have.

FRC writes,

Censoring of religious expression in schools often comes from teachers and school administrators being unaware of students’ freedoms. However, the U.S. Department of Education has already clarified that students are free to speak about their faith at school. . . .Since 1995, the U.S. Department of Education has issued guidelines clarifying students’ freedom to express their faith. There are seven key liberties every student and educator needs to know.

Family Research Council says those seven rights are:

  1. The right to pray and read the Bible at school.
  2. The right to express faith in class work or homework.
  3. The right to organize prayer groups and religious clubs at school.
  4. The right to express religious belief at school events.
  5. The right to go off campus for religious studies in some states.
  6. The right to express faith at graduation ceremonies.
  7. The right of teachers to organize prayer groups with other teachers.

This is a welcome reminder once again that student’s and teachers do not shed their religious liberties at the schoolhouse doors.

One way we encourage students to exercise these religious liberties is to take part in the annual Bring Your Bible to School Day that Focus on the Family organizes each year. You can learn more about Bring Your Bible to School Day here.

You can download FRC’s printable flyer explaining these seven liberties here.

Photo Credit: Batotman [CC BY 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], from Wikimedia Commons

Governor Hutchinson Opposes Casino Measure

Yesterday the Secretary of State certified a proposed constitutional amendment legalizing four casinos in Arkansas for the November 6 General Election ballot.

The amendment, Issue 4, would convert the racetracks in Hot Springs and West Memphis into full fledged casinos, and it would let casinos open in or near Russellville and Pine Bluff.

According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, at a news conference in the Capitol yesterday, Governor Hutchinson told reporters,

I will vote ‘no’ on the casino amendment because I have always opposed the expansion of casino gambling in Arkansas.

The campaign to pass Issue 4 largely has been bankrolled by the Quapaw and Cherokee tribes in Oklahoma, which together have donated more than $2 million to the casino measure.

Last week the Arkansas Department of Transportation criticized the advertising tactics the measure’s backers are using. Campaign material in support of Issue 4 indicates that casino tax money will provide funding for highway improvement. However, the amendment itself does not earmark any casino tax revenue for highways. Ultimately, state and local officials will decide how that tax money will be spent.

You can read more about this story here.