Removal of religious references reflects expansion of intolerance

[rug]

By Valerie Yu - Counterpoint · Daily Trojan
Posted Yesterday at 9:06 pm in Columns, Opinion

Last Sunday marked the International Day for Tolerance, an annual observance initiated by UNESCO in 1995. Tolerance has been gaining ground in recent years, but ironically, it doesn’t always mean peace. As the holidays draw near, conflicts bred in the name of tolerance abound, and it’s no longer just about whether evergreens should be called “holiday trees” or “Christmas trees.” The Montgomery Board of Education has now applied the notion of tolerance to the school calendar — but in the most insensitive way.

Last Tuesday, the public school board voted to eliminate references to all religious holidays from next year’s school calendar in Montgomery County, Maryland. Christmas, Easter, Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah are among days omitted. Schools, however, will still close on the same days, but only because they happen to coincide with high rates of student and staff absenteeism. As board members have made clear, days off aren’t meant to observe those religious holidays — they say such closures are not legally permitted.

The move was made as a response to the requests of the county’s Muslim community to recognize its faith by setting aside an off-day for Eid al-Adha. But beyond failing to find a solution to equal billing for all faiths, the board has taken two steps back in antagonizing Judeo-Christian communities. And it’s nowhere closer to equality.

It’s true that nothing about the number of days off changes, and perhaps, the reasons cited aren’t inherently wrong — legally speaking. In nearby northern Virginia, Fairfax and Loudoun counties both have secular calendars. Religious neutrality in a multicultural district is understandable, and technically speaking, schools are really supposed to be closed because of operational purposes during the holidays and not because a specific religious holiday needs to be celebrated.

http://dailytrojan.com/2014/11/17/removal-of-religious-references-reflects-expansion-of-intolerance/

http://www.un.org/en/events/toleranceday/

[CurtEastPoint]

1. Celebrate your faith at home and in your place of worship.

[rug]

2. How tolerant.

Confine your religious opinions to a ghetto.

[atreides1]

3. Wow

Is that how you define a home, as a ghetto?

Generally you're one of the more eloquent speakers here regarding religious discussions...so I was a little surprised that you would make a statement like that.

[djean111]

6. The original intent, I think, of that "freedom of religion" statement, was to ensure that we

did not have a "religion of state", that we were free to adhere to any religion, or no religion, without fear of government reprisals.
I think that should have been phrased "freedom FROM religion", to be more clear.
Nowadays, if I do not want to be subjected to (Christian) proselytizing or imagery, I am preventing Christians from exercising the freedom of their religion to insert itself into work or school or any aspect of ordinary life.

Interesting how the very thought of including a Muslim holiday met with such an overreaction. Were any Jewish holidays on that school calendar?

[cbayer]

13. Yes, there were christian and jewish holidays on the calendar.

I tend to think that they should have added the Muslim one instead of eliminating them all.

The secular holidays remain, of course.

[djean111]

18. Yes, they should have added the Muslim holiday.

But I do not see the harm in what they did.

[cbayer]

22. I don't really see any harm either.

They had the opportunity to be inclusive and possibly a chance to educate kids about Islam, which is, imo, a good thing.

But they took the easy way out…

and ended up just offending almost everyone it seems, lol.

[rug]

16. Check your definition of ghetto.

People inside it could practice their religion to their hearts' content.

[cbayer]

23. There is sometimes a misconception on this site that ghetto

is only connected to nazi germany.

It's a good opportunity to get people to learn more about it.

[rug]

25. At least nobody suggested an eruv.

Yet.

[edhopper]

7. You think religious celebration

belongs in public schools? Wow!

[cbayer]

14. 1. He didn't say that. 2. The article is not at all about that.

[rug]

17. Wow yourself.

Do you see a wee gap between confining your faith to your bedroom and proselytizing in a classroom?

[edhopper]

19. Your bedroom

Is your only place of worship?

[rug]

21. It is a place of ecstasy.

[edhopper]

27. But you think celebrating your religion

In your home and place of worship, and not in public schools his ghettoizing?
My "wow" remains.

[rug]

28. Before you strain your wow, why don't you answer the question?

Do you see a wee gap between confining your faith to your bedroom and proselytizing in a classroom?

[edhopper]

29. What part

Of "place of worship" don't you understand?

Confining it to only "bedroom" and not even "home", as in the post is disingenuous.

[rug]

30. What part of "confine" don't you understand?

[edhopper]

31. Huh?

[rug]

32. That was my original reply.

2. How tolerant.

Confine your religious opinions to a ghetto.

[edhopper]

33. So the question of

Keeping religious celebration to the home and place of worship, and not in public schools, which is the context of the thread, is ghettoizing to you?

[cbayer]

34. Ahem, the article is not about religious celebrations in public schools.

You might want to actually read the article before commenting further.

[edhopper]

37. Apologies

I thought I was responding to rug.
I am deleting my previous response.

[cbayer]

40. I also removed mine. Peace.

[edhopper]

38. Yes

This took off from the first reply.

[AtheistCrusader]

10. Rofl, stay classy, Rug.

You of course, do a disservice to humans who have experienced such things when you try to mischaracterize suggesting one exercise religious faith on your own time, rather than as an official function of a state school, as something akin to ghettoization.

Soooper classy.

[rug]

20. I can't if I respond to you.

Nevertheless . . . .

Do you see any mention of exercising religious faith as an official function of a state school in this post?

1. Celebrate your faith at home and in your place of worship.

Sooper obtuse.

[cbayer]

12. Er. that's pretty much what people do.

And this isn't about celebrating anything in the schools, but about the calendar and days off.

But nice knee jerk response there.

[yeoman6987]

26. Christmas is a federal holiday

Until that changes, it should be on the calendar. Easter is not a federal holiday and should be off the calendar. Not hard to figure out.

[SamKnause]

4. The religious;

can worship 24/7 at home

can worship 24/7 at the homes of religious family members

can worship 24/7 at the homes of their religious friends

can worship 24/7 at their places of worship

can worship 24/7 at their religious schools.

If any group is being intolerant it is the religious groups.

They are being intrusive.

[rurallib]

9. and they can do it 24/7 in their own heads if they so desire

but it really doesn't belong in public schools, or city halls or county courthouses or state legislatures etc.

[cbayer]

15. The article is about a calendar, not a celebration in the schools.

Did anyone actually read this article?

[rug]

24. Why do you think the schools close on those holidays?

What do you think they should call them instead, the third of Nivôse?

[sinkingfeeling]

5. Really? I sure don't see it as such.

[Cartoonist]

8. the board has taken two steps back in antagonizing Judeo-Christian communities

Wow! What a biased opinion. I call it a great leap forward for religious freedom.

[cbayer]

11. I tend to agree that adding the Muslim holiday would have been a better response.

It looks really insensitive to me that they would rather eliminate them all than add one.

[2naSalit]

39. Hmmm

I saw the school board's solution to be more appropriate since the snowball effect becomes inevitable at some point. If you choose to recognize no religion, as seems appropriate with regard to the separation of church and state clause, then there should be no problem. The article indicates that the decision was made in light of the fact that there would be low attendance on those days but without favoring any set of particular religions. The snowball effect: so what about Hindus and Shintos and Wiccans and all the other religions/belief systems that exist in a multicultural community? If they all have their sects recognized on the calendar, there will be little time in the calendar for actual school scheduling.

When you bring gum to class, you should bring enough for everyone or leave it at home.

I think the board's decision was appropriate. Sorry Christians, your days of dominating everything public are waning, as it should be.

[cbayer]

41. They had a good policy about it, I think, and the Muslims were asking for a single day.

But I don't object to their decision. They were in a tough spot. My only concern is whether they made this decision based on bigotry, but that remains unclear.

It was just a name on the calendar. They aren't actually going to change the holidays, btw. I'm at a loss as to what they will call the religious ones, particularly the Jewish ones, but that is their problem, I guess.

Honestly, I think the holidays of as many groups as possible should be on school calendars. It's an opportunity for education. That's gun for everyone. Whether the school is closed on those days should be in line with their policy about attendance.

This isn't about christians dominating everything, imo, and there is no reason for you to hide.