Logo
  • Home
  • Ask
  • Teen Help Network
  • About
    • About Judge Tom
    • Books
    • FAQs
    • Press Room
  • Your Rights
    • Crime and Punishment
    • Student Rights at School
    • You and Your Body
    • You and the Internet
    • Juvenile Justice System
    • LGBT Youth Rights
    • More Categories
  • Blog
  • Get Help
    • Videos
    • A Teenager’s Guide to Juvenile Court
    • Books
    • Research & Resources
  • Newsletter Signup

 

Q&A

Know your rights! Youth justice and juvenile law answers.

Askthejudge.info features regular updates from the news, important decisions from the nation′s courts, and online discussions with Judge Tom. Find out everything you need to know about youth rights, juvenile law and juvenile justice. AsktheJudge – Empowering youth one question at a time.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this site is made available to the general public and is not intended to serve as legal advice.You should consult a trained legal professional in your area for questions you may have about the laws affecting juveniles or any legal interpretations.

Copyright, 2014
Logo
October 18, 2012
Judge Tom
Blog
0

Are “run-through” banners with Bible verses at high school football games legal?

PreviousNext
High School Football Banner

The Kountze High School cheerleaders in Texas thought the run-through banners they made were a non-issue since they’ve been around for decades. Recent complaints, however, resulted in a ban of the banners in September, 2012. They had already been used at three home football games when the school district superintendent banned them.

The cheerleaders made the 20 by 10 feet high banners during the summer. They used their own materials and chose the inspirational messages without adult supervision. Some included quotes from the Bible with a reference to the verse. No faculty or school official was involved.

Some of the girls on the team objected to the ban. They and their parents filed a lawsuit* requesting an injunction from enforcing the ban. The state court judge granted their request. Another hearing is scheduled in October and in the meantime, the banners may be used at sporting events. At the hearing on October 18, 2012, the judge continued the injunction meaning the use of the banners is allowed to carry on until at least a trial is conducted in June, 2013.

The issue as you know is separation of church and state. The First Amendment prohibits government from establishing or endorsing religion or prohibiting the free exercise of such. Any act that supports a particular religion in a public school has been held unconstitutional by state and federal courts including the U.S. Supreme Court. For more on this subject, click here.

In Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe,** the Supreme Court ruled that student-led, student initiated prayer at another Texas high school violated the Establishment Clause because the prayer offered at a football game was said over the school’s public address system at a school-sponsored event that represented the student-body and was under the supervision of the school’s faculty. The Court ruled that the Constitution demands that schools not force students to choose between whether to attend the sporting events or to risk facing a personally offensive religious ritual.

How do you think the court will rule on these religious banners? Could they be offensive to non-Christian students or should they have to accept it if they choose to go to this particular public high school?

Update: In May 2013, the Texas judge ruled in favor of the cheerleaders stating, “The Kountze cheerleader’s banners that included religious messages and were displayed during the 2012 football season were constitutionally permissible,” said State District Judge Steve Thomas. “Neither the Establishment Clause nor any other law prohibits cheerleaders from using religious-themed banners at school sporting events.” The summary judgment ruling eliminated the need for the case to go to trial.

*Matthews v. Kountze Independent School District (2012).

**530 U.S. 290, 120 S.Ct. 2266 (2000).

freedom of speechreligionrights at school
Share this
Judge Tom

The Author Judge Tom

Judge Tom is the founder and moderator of AsktheJudge.info. He is a retired juvenile judge and spent 23 years on the bench. He has written several books for lawyers and judges as well as teens and parents including 'Teen Cyberbullying Investigated' (Free Spirit Publishing) and 'Every Vote Matters: the Power of Your Voice, from Student Elections to the Supreme Court' (Free Spirit Publishing). In 2020, the American Bar Association published "Cyberbullying Law," the nation's first case-law book written for lawyers, judges and law students. When he's not answering teens' questions, Judge Tom volunteers with the American Red Cross and can be found hiking, traveling and reading.

Find great resources in our

Teen Help Network


Leave A Comment Cancel reply