Kids deserve choice on 'moment' too
As an early childhood education student, I try to keep up with issues surrounding education. The article "Moment of silence gets another look" concerns me.
On issues of prayer, those affected by legislative decisions are of more importance than what legislators want.
I read the words student's rights, by estimation, only in one out of 10 newspaper articles. The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois understands that the choice to have a quiet moment of prayer rests upon the student. Can anyone intelligently disagree with this?
I am being taught to respect the "whole child." I do this by remembering all the selves: physical, social, emotional, creative and cognitive. Shouldn't the spiritual child be considered?
Whether we like it or not, it's a fact (according to recent news on political surveys and polls) that important to most Americans is their spiritual and religious inclination.
It's surprising how a society that understands this aspect of itself also severs the spiritual connection millions of children carry with them to school everyday.
The Supreme Court interpreted the First Amendment's clause "The Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion" to mean that public schools need to be neutral in the subject of religion.
Why is the second part, "or prohibiting the free exercise thereof," ignored?
Legislators need to stop trying to impose upon the schools, and ultimately our children, what they should or shouldn't do in reference to moments of silence.
To effectively teach the importance of democratic freedom, we must allow children to exercise freedom to choose the observance of a moment of prayer regardless of the name government may want to give it.
Merari Sanchez
St. Charles