It's Valentine's Day-- So It's Time for A Religious Freedom Lawsuit

Hardly over the "Christmas Wars" in public schools, it appears that a "Valentine's Day Skirmish" has begun. A trial court in Harris County Texas has granted a temporary restraining order against the Katy, Texas Independent School District, ordering it to permit children to hand out to classmates valentines and candy containing religious themes. It also requires the schools to permit students to express their personal religious views in class discussions, writing assignments and non-instructional time, so long as it does not substantially disrupt school operations. The suit was filed by Liberty Legal Institute and the Alliance Defense Fund, and alleged that in the past, students had been prohibited from drawing religious images in an art fundraiser, mentioning Jesus in a class discussion on Easter, handing out faith bracelets during recess, talking about Jesus with other children during free time and silently praying. (LLI release- scroll to Feb. 13 releases; ADF release.) The full text of the complaint and a copy of the TRO are available online. In a release on the case, the school district said: "Because there was no real dispute about what would be allowed to happen tomorrow, the judge entered the TRO... The district believes that it is unfortunate that neither the plaintiffs nor their attorneys ever attempted to contact the school district to discuss this matter prior to filing the lawsuit. It was never the intent of the schools in question to limit what messages their students could exchange at tomorrow’s parties."