The Muslim religion requires prayer a certain number of times a day, in a certain manner.
The school is providing a space for this so the student can do this without disrupting the class.
That is it. This is not a student “group” activity.
Groups have noting to do with it. You do not get to change the standard because 2 people want to do it. Further, we are talking about accommodations being made in this example because they are Muslim and others being denied when accommodations are not even required.
That you would defend that outright based on them being a 'group' just massively reinforces my point.
The Christian religion is not so strict on the issue of when and how to pray. As far as I know, students are not banned from individual prayer as long as it does not disrupt class. That is kind of a key component of religious accommodation, right? That it not substantially disrupt a class or workplace?
We are not talking about praying, we are talking about religious accommodations.
Trying to narrow it down to prayer is, once again, reinforcing my point.
Ignore the accommodations to try and pick a singular activity out in order to justify the action here and deny the action elsewhere. Interestingly, the Islamic requirements do, without question, cause problems because the hard prayer times. Most Christians are just trying to use facilities that are open and available for group gatherings and cost the district exactly nothing whatsoever and cause exactly zero disruptions.
If I understand it correctly, California school policies must adhere to Department of Education rules to get federal funding, right?
U.S. Department of Education:
In order to receive federal funds, a local education agency (LEA) must annually certify in writing to its state education agency (SEA) that the LEA has no policy that prevents or denies student and staff participation in constitutionally protected prayer in its elementary and secondary schools. LEAs are required to submit the certification to SEAs by October 1. By November 1, SEAs must notify the Department of Education of any LEAs that have not filed certification.
No specific certification form for LEAs to use has been designated; states should establish systems for processing certifications.
Some student activities that fall under constitutionally protected prayer include
- praying during non-instructional time, such as during recess or lunch;
- reading religious texts during non-instructional time;
- praying before meals; and
- forming prayer groups or religious clubs that meet before or after school.
Staff members also are permitted to meet with colleagues before school or during lunch for prayer or religious study groups. Teachers are not permitted to engage in those activities with students.
Students also may express their religious beliefs in homework, artwork, and other written and oral assignments.
What California school policies violate this?
You mean like this one where the students had to sue to get equal access?
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in its dispute with San Jose Unified School District. Learn more.
news.yahoo.com
And the court seems to agree that they violated religious freedom.
Or here:
The Grossmont Union High School District was sued in federal court Tuesday for allegedly prohibiting one of its students to formally establish a Christian Bible study and prayer group on the Granite Hills High School campus.
www.latimes.com
They were allowed to be Christian and meet together if they shut up and never told anyone about it. I wonder if it would be okay to demand the Islamic prayer times were snuck out the back door and only allowed if you did not tell anyone that it was available for them? Nope, that would be asinine.
Or a thousand other examples. Schools in very liberal states have been barring Christians from holding religious activities for a very long time for a huge variety of reasons. From being barred from talking about the 'club' as above (something no other group is barred from doing) to anti discrimination laws being used to discriminate.
Are they going to apply those discrimination standards to Islamic prayer which should be segregated? I almost guarantee they will not. It will be okay in that case.
Find me a good reason why CA can and DOES bar Christian groups performing religious rights but suddenly want to make accommodations for others.
What is really pathetic is that the phrase 'if you want bible study in school you are going to have to allow Satanists and Islamists that right too' has been the go to line for secularists against Cristian encroachment on schools for decades. I completely agree with that sentiment but here we are showing the lie that stance seems to have been.
It is okay for those groups, just not the one in majority. Brings me right back to what the modern left cares about - power, victimization and minority status. The specifics are immaterial.