9th Circuit Arguments On Islam Role-Playing In Schools

The New York Sun reported yesterday on arguments in the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday. Two Christian families from Contra Costa County, California appealed from a 2003 decision. They had charged Byron, California school officials with violating the First Amendment's Establishment Clause. In order to acquaint seventh graders with Islam, Excelsior Elementary School had students role play. They were to wear Islamic dress, recite phrases from the Koran, and mimic the fasting associated with the observance of Ramadan. They also engaged in a "race to Mecca". An attorney for the families, Edward White III, told the Court that during the eight-week unit on Islam, religious teachings were described as "facts" and students were instructed to wear name tags that included the religion's star-and-crescent imagery. "All of these actions are crossing the line," said Mr. White, a lawyer with a Michigan-based Thomas More Law Center.