9th Circuit Dismisses Challenge To School's Islamic Role-Playing Exercise

On Thursday, in Elkund v. Byron Union School District, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court's dismissal of a challenge to elementary school role playing activities that were designed to acquaint students with Islam. (See prior posting.) The court held that the activities were not overt religious exercises that raised Establishment Clause concerns. It also affirmed the district court's findings granting defendants qualified immunity and finding that certain of the plaintiffs lacked standing. In reporting on the decision, an article from the Contra Costa Times quoted plaintiffs' attorneys as saying that the ruling was "an opinion without any precedent." An attorney for the school, however, said that she was "delighted the school district got this matter behind it" and could "move on with the business of educating children."