Jesus Mad At Non-Christians, Louisiana Students Told: Lawsuit

BOSSIER PARISH, LA — Elementary, middle and high school students in a Louisiana school district are required to memorize sectarian prayers; are told that to be good people, they must be Christians; and get special favors from teachers and administrators if they practice Christianity, all in violation of the Establishment Clause of the Constitution according to a lawsuit filed by a religious liberty watchdog group.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State said it filed the lawsuit against Bossier Parish Schools on behalf of four parents, who were not identified to protect their children from harassment.

The 22,500 students in the school district, which serves families of military members stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base, come from a variety of religious and philosophical backgrounds, but are coerced “into religious practices” and subjected to “unwelcome religious messages and indoctrination,” the lawsuit said. It alleged “some Bossier Parish teachers proselytize during class” and “pray aloud for students.”

In one instance, a Bossier Parish teacher “told a student that she ‘needed Jesus’ after she misbehaved in class. Another teacher told a child that Jesus was angry at those who did not attend church, and that non-Christians are bad people,” the lawsuit said.

Often, the lawsuit said, students who practice a religion other than Christianity or no religion at all, or who consider their faith a private matter, are forced to “choose between taking part in events that endorse religious beliefs to which they do not adhere and that require religious practices they do not wish to take part in, or excluding themselves ...”

Those who choose not to participate are coerced to do so, the lawsuit said, and face “ostracism by their classmates if they do not,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit said commonplace activities like sporting practices and events, recognition banquets, graduation ceremonies, pep rallies and student council meetings often begin and end with Christian prayers. Many of these events are held at churches where religious iconography is prominently displayed, “thus creating an atmosphere closer to Sunday school than to public school,” the lawsuit said.

Bossier Parish Schools said in a statement to the Shreveport Times that it is updating its policies to ensure “full legal compliance across the school district,” and that all teachers, coaches and administrators will go through mandatory training on laws forbidding the establishment of religion.

"We trust these affirmative steps will resolve the current federal court matter in short order so that precious taxpayer funds can be spent on continuing to improve the quality of educational services to students rather than on potentially expensive litigation," the statement reads. "Bossier Schools will always carefully respect and preserve the fundamental rights of all students, including their cherished First Amendment right to freedom of religion.”

Eric Rothschild, senior litigation counsel at Americans United, told the Shreveport newspaper that the organization is “happy to see” the district’s response, but has no plans to to drop its lawsuit. American United became involved in the issue in May 2017 after a community member voiced concern about students being coerced to participate in student-led prayers at a graduation ceremony.

Since then, more parents and community members contacted Americans United, the organization said on its website. It has asked the school to change its practices at least three times, but the school took no action.

"We had reached out before we filed the lawsuit in a letter letting the district know about all the violations we had become aware of. ... We asked them to stop those constitutional violations and that didn't happen,” Rothschild said.

"We'll have to see what the details are of the changes they propose," he said. "We think it was important that parents who felt aggrieved by how their constitutional rights and the constitutional rights of their children. ... I think they are doing it for many other families in the district. I hope we are seeing the first signs of a resolution."

Read the lawsuit.

Photo via Shutterstock