Sophomore Oleg Manzyuk and many of his friends stayed home from San Juan High School on April 18, the Day of Silence. On that day, homosexual students and their supporters wore tape over their mouths in protest.
Two years ago, the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) established the Day of Truth — April 19 this year — to express a Christian perspective. Nearly 7,000 students participated in the third-annual Day of Truth.
But Oleg wasn’t in class that day either; he and about a dozen others were suspended by the Citrus Heights, Calif., school for wearing T-shirts with Scripture verses addressing homosexuality. In four California districts, at least 150 students were suspended.
“It was my idea for the shirt,” Oleg said. “Some of the gay students wore shirts (with rainbows and mentions of gay sex), and they were not suspended. That’s just ridiculous. They’re showing their opinion; so can we.”
The girl who wore the gay-sex shirt was suspended three days later.
Trent Allen, director of information for the San Juan Unified School District, said any shirt that creates an “atmosphere of intimidation” is not OK. “Students on both sides of the issue who are wearing shirts that do not continue the conversation in an educational manner” are asked to remove the shirts or turn them inside out.
...Candi Cushman, education analyst for Focus on the Family Action:
“While we would encourage students to always use compassionate and respectful message on their T-shirts, the sad thing is, these kids shouldn’t be having to deal with homosexual politics in their public schools at all,” she said. “If schools are going to insist on allowing adult agendas to be promoted in their hallways and classes, then the least they can do is give equal access and equal respect to religious students’ point of view.”
Amen.If public school administrators and teachers accommodate pro-gay activists on the Day of Silence, they must grant the same accommodation to those with a differing opinion. Wisdom would suggest that public schools should not accommodate ANYONE seeking to turn the classroom into a platform for any political agenda, let alone one as divisive as this...
