Music Can Be Banned Even if it Sounds Religious?

"A public school has banned performance of an instrumental version of "Ave Maria" at its high-school graduation simply because the superintendent fears it might sound religious – and the U.S. Supreme Court is allowing the ban to stand by refusing to hear the case.

Kathryn Nurre, a former student at Henry M. Jackson High School in Everett, Wash., brought the action against Carol Whitehead, superintendent of Everett School District, alleging that she engaged in unjustified censorship of expression.

Nurre, a member of the Jackson High School Wind Ensemble who played alto saxophone, received her high school diploma in June 2006. The group was expected to perform at the graduation ceremony, and 17 students unanimously chose Franz Biebl's "Ave Maria" as their selection.

Their performance would be purely instrumental, with no singing or lyrics.

However, upon learning of the selection, Jackson High School Principal Terry Cheshire contacted District Executive Director Lynn Evans, who in turn contacted Superintendent Whitehead...

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You know, I really wonder if the Constitution is still around there somewhere?
 

 

Boy's Jesus poster sent to Supreme Court

This story gets the "How we roll" award because of the young boy and his family fight for their belief in Jesus...



When kindergartner Antonio Peck made a poster suggesting Jesus was the way to "save the world," little did he know his artwork would spark a 10-year legal battle that has seen six court decisions fire back and forth only to now be sent to the U.S. Supreme Court.

According to the original complaint filed a decade ago, Peck's kindergarten teacher, Susan Weichert, instructed the class to create a poster with cutout pictures illustrating the children's understanding of the environment and asking them to show ways to take care of the earth.

Peck, a student of Catherine McNamara Elementary School in Baldwinsville, N.Y., during the 1999-2000 school year, drew a picture featuring religious figures and the words, "The only way to save the world." ...


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