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Humanist Group Says Rankin County School District Violated Establishment Clause (Again)

The Rankin County School District is under fire for one teacher's disparaging comments against atheism. The American Humanist Association's legal center sent the district http://americanhumanist.org/system/storage/2/f8/3/5755/RankinAHA_-_NRHS_MS_Letter_10-13-15.pdf">a letter on Tuesday detailing a complaint from a student and her parent that said the student's history teacher, who is also a pastor at a Baptist Church, has made several jabs at atheism in comments made in class throughout the year.

Northwest Rankin High School, where this history teacher teaches, has had trouble with the First Amendment before. A few months ago, the district came to a settlement with http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2015/jul/22/rankin-schools-paying-religion-violation/">a former student who sued and won after she was forced to attend a blatantly Christian assembly during school hours.

The letter is not a lawsuit, but it asks the district to comply with the Establishment Clause and provide written notices to all faculty reminding them to not make remarks "promoting religion and disparaging atheism." The American Humanist Association has asked for a response from the district within a week. The seven-page letter details parts of the Constitution and legal history that could be argued to prove the teacher's comments unconstitutional.

Monica Miller, an attorney at the association's legal center wrote, "Good faith is not a defense to contempt and you are court-ordered to ensure that your employees are complying with the Consent Decree and Establishment Clause."

The American Humanist Association provided counsel to http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2015/jul/22/rankin-schools-paying-religion-violation/">Magdalene Bedi, the Northwest Rankin High School student who sued and won after being forced to attend a Christian assembly in 2013. The district must pay damages to Bedi for additional violations since they violated two consent decrees after she filed her original lawsuit.

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