Teacher wants CA ballot to allow religious Christmas carols in school

November 5, 9:39 PMAtheism ExaminerTrina Hoaks

Previous Next

7 comments Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Atheism Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Children singing

Microsoft Word stock photo

Merry Susan Hyatt, a 61-year-old substitute teacher in California, feels that school children should sing religious Christmas carols in school. She was moved to start a ballot drive "that would require the state's public schools to offer Christmas music during the holiday season," according to a report on The New York Times Web site, after working at a school that only allowed nondenominational songs to be sung during holiday parties. She felt is was unfair.

Backers of the initiative to get the issue put on the ballot need to acquire 434,000 valid signatures on petitions to make it happen.

Reportedly, Hyatt feels that children need this. She said, "'They need to see that we believe in Jesus, and He is the Prince of Peace. That's why we are the best country on Earth.'" And as far as she is concerned, non-Christian children, can opt out and go sit in another room. (This reminds me of what Bill Murray was told when he didn't want to participate in school prayer.)

Of course, this makes children stand out and can lead to them being singled out and treated differently by the other children who are Christian. But, according to the report, "she had not often encountered people who do not celebrate Christmas." So, I suppose it's okay to do this because those who would be subjected to it are the minority.

It seems that what Hyatt fails to realize is that although many people do celebrate Christmas, not all of them celebrate it as a religious holiday.

In an article on the Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AU) Web site, Joseph L. Conn said, "We shouldn't worry too much about Hyatt's proposal going on the ballot. It requires 464,000 signatures to secure a spot, and she's unlikely to round up that many. But," he added, "we should worry about the sentiment Hyatt's crusade represents. Here's a woman who's so tone-deaf to American pluralism that she thinks everyone should be forced to enjoy Christmas whether they want to or not."

Conn went on to say that "...Hyatt is not alone. The grim-faced legions of the Religious Right are already out there, constructing Nativity scenes on the courthouse lawn and demanding that store clerks say 'Merry Christmas' and not 'Happy Holidays.'"