-Caveat Lector- http://www.thenewamerican.com/tna/2002/03-11-2002/vo18no05_difference.htm
WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! Making A Difference by Robert W. Lee "Straight Pride" On the afternoon of January 16, 2001, 16-year-old Elliott Corbett, then a sophomore, currently a junior, at Woodbury High School in St. Paul, Minnesota, was told by an assistant principal that a female student had registered a complaint against a sweatshirt he had worn to school that day. The girl represented a group of homosexual and lesbian students offended by the "Straight Pride" logo embossed on the front of the shirt, and a picture of a stick man and woman holding hands on the back. According to Elliott and his parents, Kendal and Lana Corbett, the shirt was not intended to denigrate other sexual lifestyles, but rather to make a positive statement about heterosexuality at a school that caters to homosexual students by displaying inverted pink triangles (widely-recognized symbols of the homosexual movement) at so-called "safe" sites set aside for student/teacher discussions and counseling about homosexuality and other non-traditional relationships. In the words of Mrs. Corbett, her son's intent was to show support "for the traditional and wholesome way to approach sex ... which is God's plan." The next day, Elliott, a devout Christian, was summoned to the office of principal Dana Babbitt and told that he would not be allowed to wear the sweatshirt because it violated the school's dress code prohibiting the wearing of items with unacceptable written or graphic depictions that offend others. "Unacceptable" depictions were defined as those commonly viewed as vulgar, obscene, or socially demeaning or derogatory. His sweatshirt messages, Babbitt told him, were not only offensive to the school's gay, lesbian, and bisexual students, but could cause safety problems. On April 2, 2001, the Center for Law & Policy, legal arm of the American Family Association, filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Elliott and his parents, contending that the school's disciplinary action against him constituted viewpoint discrimination, and that the school's display of inverted pink triangles promoted homosexuality. On May 17, 2001, Judge Donovan W. Frank of the U.S. District Court for Minnesota, noting that there was indeed "a strong likelihood" that the school's action was unconstitutional, issued a preliminary injunction allowing Elliott to wear the sweatshirt. On January 2nd of this year, he rendered his final decision. While rejecting the claim that the school was promoting homosexuality, and agreeing that there are circumstances when a school can prohibit student expression ordinarily protected by the U.S. Constitution, Judge Frank held that in Elliott's case Woodbury High officials had failed to demonstrate that the shirt could disrupt school activities. "Maintaining a school community of tolerance includes the tolerance of such viewpoints, as expressed by ‘Straight Pride,'" he wrote in his 10-page decision. Stephen M. Crampton, chief counsel for the Center for Law & Policy, described the ruling as "a tremendous victory for student free speech and a small step toward exposing the hypocrisy of the ‘tolerance' agenda." Valentine Victory Eight-year-old Morgan Nyman was in the second grade at Cushing Elementary School in Delafield, Wisconsin, last year when she sought to distribute homemade Valentine's Day cards to classmates. The cards carried religious messages such as "Jesus loves you" and "F.R.O.G.: Freely Rely on God." School officials allowed other students to pass out cards featuring pop singer Britney Spears, the boy band 'N Sync, and Looney Tunes characters, but balked at the little girl's religious themes. Branding them a violation of church-state separation, they refused to allow her to hand them out. School officials claimed that they were merely implementing policy set by the parent Kettle Moraine School District, so in March 2001 the Florida-based civil liberties law practice Liberty Counsel filed a federal suit against the district on Morgan's behalf, through her parents, Jeff and Shanon Stockhausen. The suit charged the district with violating her rights of free speech and free exercise of religious belief. The case did not make it to court, however. On August 28th the school board opted to settle rather than undergo costly litigation of a case it was likely to lose. It also voted for policy changes that authorize students to distribute religious material in the same way that they pass out secular literature. And board members agreed that the district would not prohibit Morgan from distributing valentines, during future Valentine's Day exchanges, on the basis of their religious content. Terms of the settlement agreement also required the district to issue a public apology by having a statement printed in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the closing words of which assert: "To the extent the school's actions may have infringed upon Morgan's First Amendment right to free speech, the School District of Kettle Moraine apologizes." And it was agreed that the district's insurance company would pay Liberty Counsel $15,000 to cover legal fees and court costs. Good Scouts Until last year, the South Florida Council of Boy Scouts of America, serving some 21,000 Cub and Boy Scouts in Monroe, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties, typically received between $128,000 to $175,000 from the Broward County United Way. But in October 2000, the charitable collection agency adopted a policy requiring member organizations to sign no-discrimination agreements regarding sexual orientation. The Scouts were thereby excluded from UW membership due to the respected youth organization's policy that bars avowed homosexuals from membership and leadership positions. To make up the financial loss, however, a couple in South Florida tendered a $200,000 gift to the council in September expressing their longtime admiration and support of Scouting. According to council Scout Executive and CEO Jeffrie Herrman, it was the single largest donation designated by individuals for operating expenses in the council's history. It will be used for such endeavors as camp programs, recruitment, and activities designed to help boys advance through Scouting's ranks. The anonymous couple, whose sons had all participated in Scouting, asked the council to challenge other members of the community to contribute an additional $200,000 in matching funds. About $100,000 had been raised by Christmas. *COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ] Want to be on our lists? Write at [EMAIL PROTECTED] for a menu of our lists! Write to same address to be off lists! <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. 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