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Orders for 'White Christmas' in Plano Schools Produce Lawsuit, DOJ Investigation

by Jody Brown
December 16, 2004

(AgapePress) - A public school district in Texas has informed its students and parents of a ban on candy canes with religious messages, pencils with the name of Jesus inscribed on them, and -- of all things -- red- and green-colored decorations at holiday parties. That action has resulted in a pair of surprise gifts under the district's tree: a federal lawsuit filed by parents and students -- and an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.

According to a press statement from the Plano, Texas-based Liberty Legal Institute, an "unconstitutional censorship policy" is being enforced by the Plano Independent School District. The legal group says its lawsuit addresses a "large amount of evidence that demonstrates the pervasive religious hostility" in the school district.

Among the examples noted by LLI are: a third-grader was prohibited from handing out "goody bags" that included candy canes with a religious message; a young girl was prevented by school officials from distributing pencils with "Jesus" written on them; and another student was told she could not invite friends to an Easter event at her church. The "icing on the cake," so to speak, is a letter that was sent home requesting that parents not send their children to school with anything red or green during the holiday season -- and mandating that all cups, plates, napkins, and icing must be white.

"These government officials have lost all common sense," says Liberty Legal's Kelly Shackelford. "Our schools are not zones of religious censorship." A federal lawsuit filed by LLI on Wednesday (December 15) on behalf of four families charges the school district has engaged in "unconstitutional and illegal actions." Shackelford insists the lawsuit was a last resort.

"We did everything we could to talk the district into doing the right thing and put an end to these violations and discriminations," he says, "but unfortunately they refused to back down." The plaintiffs and LLI attorneys announced the lawsuit at a press conference on Wednesday -- but that was not the end of the bad news for the school district. On Thursday morning, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it was opening an investigation in the Plano ISD.

In a letter to Liberty Legal, the DOJ says it is conducting a "preliminary inquiry" into the charges brought by the lawsuit. The letter stresses that no determination has been made regarding the allegations, and explains the department is authorized to intervene in legal actions against public school districts that allege a "denial of equal protection of the laws on the basis of religion."

"It is great to have a Justice Department that cares about religious freedom," says Hiram Sasser, LLI's director of litigation.

In an interview with Associated Press, Shackelford says Plano school officials have violated the constitutional rights of students and their parents. "It's dumb enough to have these little silly games to pretend like it's really a 'winter party' [and that] it's not Christmas. But they stepped way over the line here," he says. "I mean, they're telling kids you can't bring a candy cane with a story about Jesus. They're telling parents you can't pass out a Christmas message to other parents."

The attorney says he does not expect school officials to support or endorse religion. "These school officials can engage in their silly pretense that there is no Christmas if they want to," he states, "but they can't ban students and parents from celebrating the holidays and expressing themselves in accordance with their beliefs."

According to AP, school district attorney Richard Abernathy denies the claims in the lawsuit, and says school officials recently decided to allow the distribution of all materials -- religious or otherwise -- at holiday parties. LLI attorneys were surprised by that statement, saying neither students nor parents were informed of such a change. But "if that is true, that is great," says Shackelford.

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