Religious intolerance--read this!

[Morrighana]

http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/local_news/article/0,1406,KNS_347_1744221,00.html


What a world we live in, eh?

[MammaStar]

*sigh*

[mol]

Thats a pretty sad deal...

[Raevyn]

Time to switch schools? *sighs* "What a world, what a world!"

This is somewhat off topic (well not really, but)


The family follows the ancient religious tradition of Paganism, which embraces kinship with nature, positive morality and acknowledges both the female and male side of Deity, according to the Pagan Federation.

This is disappointing, if it did in fact come from the Pagan Federation, though it's just as possible the writer messed it up.

[mol]

Originally posted by Raevyn

This is disappointing, if it did in fact come from the Pagan Federation, though it's just as possible the writer messed it up.

Its better than most definitions I have seen in the news...

[SerenityMoon]

people are just sick.
i remember a case in my high school..this girl transferred, and she was in my art class...very intelligent, excellent artist, basically kept to herself...and she was an atheist. Living in a small, southern town, most of the kids called her a satan worshipper, taunted her, and tried to get me to join them. I told them I was disgusted with them, and they knew nothign abuot this girl. I stuck by her all the way through.
I hope that this girl, India, and her family get what they deserve.

[Raevyn]

Originally posted by mol

Its better than most definitions I have seen in the news...

Well it's nicer, that's true. Still incorrect though.

[Thistle]

This is just sad.

[Ravens_Tears]

It's just wrong. Bad enough that kids will find enough to pick on each other about without it being encouraged by the community at large....

[Azure]

Well, the root of the problem seems to be a total failure of the school system to maintain the good old constitutional separation of church and state. The school should not be sponsoring or encouraging that sort of evangelism.

But as long as our elected officials refuse to acknowledge the reality that the US is incredibly diverse religiously, and pretend that state sponsorship of specific religious beliefs is acceptable, then the problem will continue to show up.

On a larger scale, children learn this behavior somewhere. Shame on their parents and teachers for allowing this kind of pathetic display.

[Old Witch]

Not even down here where our Main Street is taken up by a gigantic Baptist (southern) Church and a slightly smaller Methodist Church would kids be sent to a tent revival!!

[Ryhla]

I remember as a child growing up the Gideons passing out those little red bibles in school. I never could understand why, especially when we never talked about it in class. A lot of those little red bibles also got thrown away at the school by the students. They don't do that now if I remember right...Someone could claim religious intolerance there too. I know if I was still in school and those little red bibles were still being passed out by the Gideons, I would refuse, and not have to worry about persecution in the school I went to as a child. Things like that just didn't happen there.

I hope that through this lawsuit, the school district of Union County does change for the better for all paths of religion.

[Sequoia]

That's. . . that's aweful. *shakes my head* that school system sickens me.

. . . where is Knoxville? 8O

[Djiril]

Reading articles like that makes me feel very sheltered, and very glad to have grown up in the SF bay area.

[Blueowl]

It is absolutely pathetic....and so sad...

[Ahautenites]

Makes me wish more and more that I owned a private school that only advertised to Pagans, and only by word of mouth. I mean, I wouldn't teach Pagan things. I'd just have it as a normal, secular private school so that these kids could be free to be themselves without any fear. **sighs** But chances are, the word would leak out and some fanatic of another religion would burn down the school (with or without the children in it) or kill all the teachers or something. **shakes head**

[Blueowl]

I think it is totally ridiculous to even have to feel that way...no point to it...:mad:

Maybe one day things will change...but it is hard to do when it is such a part of the nature of the beast...

[SerenityMoon]

Originally posted by Puma Hime

That's. . . that's aweful. *shakes my head* that school system sickens me.

. . . where is Knoxville? 8O

^^;; it's in Tennessee, babe....*sweat drop* it's one of the largest cities..hehe.
they still pass out little green bibles on my college campus. I just don't accept them. I tell them "no thanks".

[Psyche Ague]

I'm really shocked. Such a thing can't be real!

And I thought I grew up in an intolerant region. Crazy!

[Sequoia]

At my college campus when the semester starts, there are often these fellows in suits standing near the crosswalks and pouncing the students with copies of the new testament. . . *chuckles*

[AmbivalentMirage]

I'm amazed at the intolerance in a PUBLIC school. It's just asinine. I think they should let her lead prayer at school to the Goddess on sabbats and see just how much the Christian parents would enjoy it. :lol:

[Morrighana]

Originally posted by AmbivalentMirage

I'm amazed at the intolerance in a PUBLIC school. It's just asinine. I think they should let her lead prayer at school to the Goddess on sabbats and see just how much the Christian parents would enjoy it. :lol:

Wouldn't that be the day?


My school had twenty eight different bibles in the library (I counted once during a study spare :p ), and not a single, solitary other religious text to be found. I never felt discriminated against, though. Most of my teachers were happy to have an intelligent, well mannered student (even if I wasn't the homework-doing type ;) ), as most of my classes were filled with more... unsavory folk. *g*

[Semele]

When I graduated from nursing school we had a little pinning ceremony, seperate from the graduation and at the end of it we were having refreshments and such. Some of the auxillary ladies, (pink ladies ..older ladies that volunteer at the hospital) were there with a table of of little white new testaments to give to us. These ladies had come to the school on several occasions and been our "patients" at the very beginning of the program and they were all very sweet. I figured I would just take it and sit it back down on the table at the other end where they had them stacked when they weren't looking, that way I wouldn't risk hursting their feelings or making them concerned and I would save them a bible. However when I accepted it I was waiting for an opportunity to sneak it back on the table and I opened it and saw that it was printed upside down from the cover...go figure! So of course I had to keep it then! It was made for me.

[Azure]

Yes, Knoxville is in Tennessee *sigh* - but really, not everyone here is a radical Religious Right fundamentalist, and there are plenty of places where tolerance is the rule of thumb. I know lots of decent people in this state.

LoL on the upside down Bible, Semele.

[AmbivalentMirage]

Originally posted by Semele

When I graduated from nursing school we had a little pinning ceremony, seperate from the graduation and at the end of it we were having refreshments and such. Some of the auxillary ladies, (pink ladies ..older ladies that volunteer at the hospital) were there with a table of of little white new testaments to give to us. These ladies had come to the school on several occasions and been our "patients" at the very beginning of the program and they were all very sweet. I figured I would just take it and sit it back down on the table at the other end where they had them stacked when they weren't looking, that way I wouldn't risk hursting their feelings or making them concerned and I would save them a bible. However when I accepted it I was waiting for an opportunity to sneak it back on the table and I opened it and saw that it was printed upside down from the cover...go figure! So of course I had to keep it then! It was made for me.

...an upside-down Bible? OY! At least it wasn't upside down and backwards. ;)

[Blueowl]

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

That upside down bible is hilarious...I have had one of those too....years ago, but i have no idea where it went!

[Djiril]

Originally posted by SerenityMoon

^^;; it's in Tennessee, babe....*sweat drop* it's one of the largest cities..hehe.
they still pass out little green bibles on my college campus. I just don't accept them. I tell them "no thanks". They were passing them out at my former college too. The odd thing was, just before I saw them I was wondering where I could get a little tiny bible for religious studies.:D

[Excalibur]

None are so blind as those who are fundamentalist of any religion. I am glad that it wasn`t 17th Century Salem, for we all know what would have happened. I stongly feel that a persons beliefs are their own and that no one religion holds all the answeres. Unfortunately not everyone feels that way.

[WandererInGray]

*laughs* Aw heck, they used to pass out bibles at my college in Boulder, Colorado....and that place is one of the most religiously diverse and "open-minded" places on the planet.

:D Or at least they like to think so....

[Garnet]

Wait...it's a public school that's shipping kids to tent revivals?!? Jesu matka! Hasn't the ACLU gotten involved in India Tracy's case yet?
One of 'my crowd' in high school claimed to be a witch. I don't remember anyone making a big (or any kind of) deal about it, but we were a bunch of leftist anarchists. She was probably the least weird one.
India's in my prayers.

[Evenstar]

The public school system really does need to take a good look at the way they handle issues concerning different religions. I just graduated from high school, and although there was no obvious outspoken prejudice against pagan students, anyone could hear and see the difference in voice or attitude when the administration was dealing with anyone wearing a pentacle for example.
Every morning they would make us recite the pledge of allegiance before class started, and anyone who didn't participate was looked upon as unpatriotic when in fact that has nothing to do with it. The point was that it contained obvious Christian undertones and not everyone is Christian.
I guess all I'm trying to say is that the public school system is very hypocritical when it comes to matters of church and state. Students can be asked to remove any pagan symbols, but no one would dare ask a student to remove their crucifix.