Wednesday, January 28, 2004
The Thought police are out in force
Here are some more examples:
France has taken the step, unprecedented in all of Europe, of adding Jewish and Muslim holidays to the calendar for state schools. It’s seen as a trade-off to balance a decision banning Muslim girls from wearing headscarves to school, or the wearing of Jewish skullcaps and Christian crosses.
The Belgian parliament has published a list of “cults�. It includes Amish, Quakers, Pentecostals, Assemblies of God, and 21 groups of evangelical Christians.
A charity Christmas CD was banned from distribution because it mentions the baby Jesus. The decision by the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh, Scotland, was instituted because of fears it could offend people who belong to a faith other than Christianity.
Progressive MP Matt Robson called last year for New Zealand to replace the parliamentary prayer with a statement reflecting the secular status of the House and the "diverse and multicultural" nature of New Zealand. The prayer has been read at the beginning of each sitting since 1854.
James Lord, a senior at Dupo High School in Dupo, Illinois was suspended for one month from his daily news broadcast after signing off his December 17th broadcast with the sentence: "Have a safe and happy holiday, and God Bless." Lord said the school principal told him that the use of the words "God Bless" was inappropriate and suspended him from the broadcast for one month.
Six Canadian mayors were convicted for refusing to proclaim Gay Pride Week in their cities. Mayors had to pay fines of up to $10,000. One mayor had to pay $70,000 in legal expenses.
After Toronto print-shop owner Scott Brockie refused on religious grounds to print letterhead for a gay-activist group, the local human-rights commission ordered him to pay the group $5,000, print the requested material, and apologize to the group's leaders. British Columbia's extremely broad hate-speech law prohibits the publication of any statement that "indicates" discrimination or that is "likely" to expose a person or group or class of persons to hatred or contempt.
Harry Hammond, a street-corner preacher in the UK was found guilty of “harassment� for standing on a Bournemouth corner and holding a sign that said saying "Stop Immorality, Stop Homosexuality, Stop Lesbianism". He was fined £300 with £395 costs. The magistrates ordered that his placard be destroyed
In Tupelo, Missouri, school administrators methodically purged all Christmas carols of any religious content - and then led the children in a chant of: "Celebrate Kwanzaa!"
At Lynn Lucas Middle School, school administrators snatched three students' books with covers displaying the Ten Commandments, ripped the covers off, threw them in the rubbish, and told the students that the Ten Commandments constituted "hate speech."
In Queens, New York, Andrea Skoros is suing the New York City public school system because it would not allow her child's nativity scene to be part of its holiday display, though it allowed a menorah and an Islamic crescent. Christmas is becoming a common battleground over religious expression. Fort Lauderdale County in Florida would not permit Calvary Chapel to display the sign “Jesus is the Reason for the Season� in a city parade. The Chapel took the case to court and won. The American Centre for Law and Justice says it was beseiged with cases where students were forbidden from saying "Merry Christmas" or even wearing red or green.
In a public school in St. Louis, a teacher spotted fourth-grader Raymond Raines, bowing his head in prayer before lunch. The teacher stormed to Raymond's table, ordered him to stop immediately and sent him to the principal's office. The principal informed the young malefactor that praying was not allowed in school. When Raymond was again caught praying before meals on three separate occasions, he was segregated from other students, ridiculed in front of his classmates, and finally sentenced to a week's detention.
Here are some more examples:
France has taken the step, unprecedented in all of Europe, of adding Jewish and Muslim holidays to the calendar for state schools. It’s seen as a trade-off to balance a decision banning Muslim girls from wearing headscarves to school, or the wearing of Jewish skullcaps and Christian crosses.
The Belgian parliament has published a list of “cults�. It includes Amish, Quakers, Pentecostals, Assemblies of God, and 21 groups of evangelical Christians.
A charity Christmas CD was banned from distribution because it mentions the baby Jesus. The decision by the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh, Scotland, was instituted because of fears it could offend people who belong to a faith other than Christianity.
Progressive MP Matt Robson called last year for New Zealand to replace the parliamentary prayer with a statement reflecting the secular status of the House and the "diverse and multicultural" nature of New Zealand. The prayer has been read at the beginning of each sitting since 1854.
James Lord, a senior at Dupo High School in Dupo, Illinois was suspended for one month from his daily news broadcast after signing off his December 17th broadcast with the sentence: "Have a safe and happy holiday, and God Bless." Lord said the school principal told him that the use of the words "God Bless" was inappropriate and suspended him from the broadcast for one month.
Six Canadian mayors were convicted for refusing to proclaim Gay Pride Week in their cities. Mayors had to pay fines of up to $10,000. One mayor had to pay $70,000 in legal expenses.
After Toronto print-shop owner Scott Brockie refused on religious grounds to print letterhead for a gay-activist group, the local human-rights commission ordered him to pay the group $5,000, print the requested material, and apologize to the group's leaders. British Columbia's extremely broad hate-speech law prohibits the publication of any statement that "indicates" discrimination or that is "likely" to expose a person or group or class of persons to hatred or contempt.
Harry Hammond, a street-corner preacher in the UK was found guilty of “harassment� for standing on a Bournemouth corner and holding a sign that said saying "Stop Immorality, Stop Homosexuality, Stop Lesbianism". He was fined £300 with £395 costs. The magistrates ordered that his placard be destroyed
In Tupelo, Missouri, school administrators methodically purged all Christmas carols of any religious content - and then led the children in a chant of: "Celebrate Kwanzaa!"
At Lynn Lucas Middle School, school administrators snatched three students' books with covers displaying the Ten Commandments, ripped the covers off, threw them in the rubbish, and told the students that the Ten Commandments constituted "hate speech."
In Queens, New York, Andrea Skoros is suing the New York City public school system because it would not allow her child's nativity scene to be part of its holiday display, though it allowed a menorah and an Islamic crescent. Christmas is becoming a common battleground over religious expression. Fort Lauderdale County in Florida would not permit Calvary Chapel to display the sign “Jesus is the Reason for the Season� in a city parade. The Chapel took the case to court and won. The American Centre for Law and Justice says it was beseiged with cases where students were forbidden from saying "Merry Christmas" or even wearing red or green.
In a public school in St. Louis, a teacher spotted fourth-grader Raymond Raines, bowing his head in prayer before lunch. The teacher stormed to Raymond's table, ordered him to stop immediately and sent him to the principal's office. The principal informed the young malefactor that praying was not allowed in school. When Raymond was again caught praying before meals on three separate occasions, he was segregated from other students, ridiculed in front of his classmates, and finally sentenced to a week's detention.
