“ . . . we are living in a society that separates church and state; the University of Wisconsin is a secular institution. Religious contemplations and the bible [sic] belong to a different realm and not academic sources. So your argumentation along Christian lines . . . are inappropriate for this presentation. I will not allow you to present unless you change this. You will also fail your presentation if your [sic] discuss religion in connection with it.”For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
-- Professor Annette Kuhlman wrote to student Rachel Langeberg
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-- From "Student allegedly threatened with failing grade for including Biblical references in group presentation" by Gabriella Morrongiello, Reporter, Campus Reform 6/25/15
In a recent letter to administrators at the University of Wisconsin-Baraboo/Sauk County, the Liberty Counsel—a nonprofit, conservative litigation group—accused sociology Professor Annette Kuhlman of expressing “unconstitutional hostility toward religious belief” in her spring semester Crime and Criminal Justice course.
According to the Liberty Counsel, a draft of the group presentation sent to Professor Kuhlman included a section in which Langeberg used the Judeo-Christian theory of human nature—which asserts that humans are sinful both in practice and by nature—as one explanation for why individuals commit arson.
Langeberg subsequently chose to omit the religious references from her presentation to avoid failing the assignment and putting her group members’ grades at risk. . . .
According to the Counsel, Langeberg’s attempt to meet with school’s dean, Dr. Tracy White, and Kuhlman were unsuccessful, which led her to seek legal representation.
UW-Baraboo/Sauk County did not respond to Campus Reform’s request for comment.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Unconstitutional censorship of student speech and discrimination on the basis of religion" letter by Liberty Counsel to Dean Tracy White, University of Wisconsin Baraboo - Sauk County 6/23/15
Ms. Langeberg felt that she had no choice but to comply [with Dr. Kuhlman's direction], because the grades of her two classmates also depended on the assignment, and she could not place their grades at risk. Based on these threats from Professor Kuhlman, Ms. Langeberg changed the assignment, removing the material about competing worldviews and the causes of the crime of arson, which resulted in a presentation that deprived the class of the richness of diverse ideological perspectives. Indeed, a "theist perspective" on the causes of crime - "the heart...is desperately wicked," and that "from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying and slander" - is just as valid a position as various sociological perspectives. Ms. Langeberg's position that "juvenile arsonists commit crime because they are naturally inclined to do wrong" makes more sense than various theories that seek to absolve the arsonist of moral responsibility, whether due to "strain" on the individual, or "environmental factors" being the cause of crime," or that "lack of intelligence" causes crime. Ms. Langeberg's conclusion accurately contrasts the two perspectives: the "secular humanist says additional research is needed as to why juvenile arson happens" in order to prevent it; while the "theist says juvenile arson happens because people are naturally inclined to violate laws or sin," and therefore, people need to be "taught the moral principles of the Bible to prevent arson."
It was highly inappropriate for Dr. Kuhlman to censor this team's work and perspective on the issue, in its original form, based on incorrect and discriminatory statements about the law and religious belief. The Constitution does not “require complete separation of church and state; it affirmatively mandates accommodation, not merely tolerance, of all religions, and forbids hostility toward any.” . . .
In the academic context of reports or presentations, when a student gives a report within the parameters of the assignment, a school is prohibited from restricting the report, or threatening a failing grade, solely because the content is religious. . . .
Liberty Counsel is deeply concerned by the facts of this situation. Your ratification of Dr. Kuhlman's conduct indicates that institutional discrimination on the basis of religion extends further than one professor. Dr. Kuhlman (and all University professors) must respect the rights of students, and cease from religiously discriminatory treatment of students providing academically responsive presentations, in accordance with course syllabi.
Demand is hereby made 1) that Dr. Kuhlman email a written apology to Ms. Langeberg's team for censoring their presentation based on her perception of and hostility toward religion; and 2) that Dr. Kuhlman email a written apology along with the original PowerPoint, to the rest of the class, stating that she made a mistake in the law, that academically-responsive assignments mentioning religion in a compare/contrast manner are appropriate, and that she hopes that they will review the team's original work to receive that team's original perspective.
If the University does not comply with this demand by Friday, July 3, 2015, Liberty Counsel will take further action to prevent irreparable harm to the rights of our client, who expressly reserves all rights.
Please be governed accordingly.
Sincerely,
Richard L. Mast, Jr., Esq
(Licensed in Virginia)
To read the entire letter above, CLICK HERE.
In addition, read endless examples of "higher education" hostility toward Christianity in curriculum, and regarding employment, and discrimination in student admissions.