Jamaal+Gilchrist


 * // Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe //** ,

Background of the case
In the santa fe school district in texas there was a case where a student got on the pa system and began to pray at a home game. Some people argued that that was inappropriate considering the whole separation of school and religion, eventhough the student was a student elected chaplain.

The Court's decision
The Court held that the policy allowing the student led prayer at the football games was unconstitutional. The majority opinion, written by Justice Stevens depended on Lee v. Weisman. It held that these pre-game prayers delivered "on school property, at school-sponsored events, over the school's p a system, by a speaker representing the students, under the supervision of school staff, and pursuant to a school policy that explicitly and encourages public prayer" are not private, but public speech. "Regardless of the listener's support for, or lack of, the message, an objective Santa Fe High School student will unquestionably perceive the inevitable pregame prayer as stamped with her school's seal of approval." A dissenting opinion was written by the Chief Justice, joined by Justices Scalia and Thomas. His dissent inforced the majority opinion "bristles with hostility to all things religious in public life". His main objections were, first that the policy on which the Court has now ruled had not yet put in to practice. "The question is not whether the district's policy may be applied in violation of the Establishment Clause, but whether it inevitably will be." Second, The Chief Justice also stated that the speech in question would be private, chosen and delivered by the speaker, rather than public, school-sponsored speech.



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