A Washington state school is accused of violating two elementary students’ First Amendment religious freedom protections by denying their request to form an interfaith prayer club on campus.
Creekside Elementary School in Sammamish, Washington rejected the application in February by two 11-year-old students to start an interfaith prayer group to “serve their community,” explained Kayla Toney, associate counsel at First Liberty Institute, in an April 9 letter to the Issaquah School District.
The school rejected the request even though it permits more than a dozen other non-religious clubs to meet on campus, Ms. Toney claims.
Notably, the school allows a pride club said to “provide a ‘safe space’ for educating students on LGBTQIA+ history and people,” according to the school’s website.
It also allows a green team, focused on making the school “more sustainable,” a marimba club, chess club, and student council, among other secular groups.
The letter alleges that the school’s principal, Amy Allison, informed one of the students that she could not have an interfaith prayer club but could “fill out an application to pay to use the school after school.”
Ms. Toney’s letter addressed this issue.
“As the Supreme Court has repeatedly held, religious clubs must be afforded the same recognition, access, and rights as other non curricular clubs.”
In a March 8 meeting, Ms. Allison said that the “process of establishing clubs has ended, no new clubs are being added at this time,” according to a statement by the student and her mother that Ms. Toney cited in her letter.
“Principal Allison made this statement despite permitting a Pride Club to begin meeting the same month,” Ms. Toney claims.
“Thus [you and] Creekside [are] treating non-religious clubs more favorably than a religious club by singling out a religious club and providing it inferior access to school resources than what it provides to other non curricular groups, the District shows a hostility to religion that violates the Free Exercise Clause [of the First Amendment].
First Liberty Institute, a nonprofit law firm “dedicated to defending religious liberty,” demanded that students be allowed to start an interfaith prayer club at school.
“Denying the formation of a religious student club while allowing other clubs violates the Constitution,” Ms. Toney wrote.
“School officials at Creekside Elementary are engaged in religious discrimination against an eleven-year-old girl who simply wants to pray, feel support from other religious friends, and do community service,” her letter continued.
Ms. Toney said this seems at odds with the school district’s diversity, equity, and inclusion mission to “create welcoming and inclusive learning environments, where students, staff, and parents know that they matter and that they belong.”
The Kennedy Case
The school is just a short distance from Bremerton High School, where coach Joe Kennedy was fired for leading his high school football team in prayer after each home game.
“In Coach Kennedy’s case, the Supreme Court held that students and staff can pray at school” and to prohibit them violates the First Amendment,” the First Liberty letter stated.
Coach Kennedy won his suit for unjust firing, confirming that he had a right to pray on the field, in a 6-3 Supreme Court decision in 2022.
“The Court’s holding in Kennedy v. Bremerton School District made clear that the First Amendment protects the right of students and employees to express their faith in public schools,” Ms. Toney wrote. The court went on to add that “the First Amendment ‘doubly protects religious speech.’”
“These First Amendment protections extend to elementary school students expressing their sincere religious beliefs through voluntary clubs. Yet the Issaquah School District flouted its First Amendment obligations when Creekside refused to allow a student-led interfaith prayer club. Its unlawful action violates both the Free Exercise Clause and the Free Speech Clause,” Ms. Toney argued.
Based on Supreme Court precedent in the neighboring school district, Issaquah School District must allow the prayer club immediately, she continued.
Ms. Toney demanded that the school permit the request to start a prayer club and allow it to begin meeting no later than April 29.
If not, First Liberty is likely to take the matter to court, where Ms. Toney said she expects it will win as it did in Mr. Kennedy’s case.
When the Bremerton School District refused to settle the Kennedy matter outside of court, it had to pay First Liberty $1.7 million in legal fees.
The Epoch Times reached out to Creekside Elementary School and the Issaquah School District for comment but did not receive a reply by publication time.
