Another cadre of woke school administrators was forced to eat crow after one of their Christian students mounted a legal campaign to defend her right to free speech and religious expression. Sabrina Steffans successfully won her case after she and her legal representatives threatened action for denying her the right to post a Bible verse in a paid school parking spot.
The impetus for legal action centered around the seemingly innocuous high school senior tradition of displaying ‘positive artwork’ for in a paid parking spot. Few things seem more positive than particular Bible verses commanding goodness from us, but Grand Island Central School District had other plans. As the senior would explain in a later interview she had to submit multiple drawings, the first two of which were denied on the grounds that they were too religious.
“I put in three drawings that I did, and the first drawing was a drawing of this mountain called Salvation Mountain,” Steffans said in an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network. “And when I handed it in, they said … completely no to it because it had crosses, a Bible verse, and just a lot of religion that they said that wasn’t allowed.”
She said they finally allowed her submission to go ahead; naturally that one “had no Bible verses, no crosses, or anything.” The Bible verses in question were John 14:6 and Jeremiah 29:11, which state, respectively: “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” and “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Perhaps most egregious part of the original denial is that ant counterexample of a Muslim student posting a Q’uran verse, a student in the LGBT club posting something for their beliefs, or a black person echoing Black Lives Matter narratives would undoubtedly have been given immediate access. Many people feel it’s always Christians who are singled out.
Brian Graham, the superintendent of Steffans’ school district, released a written statement to CBN in the traditional woke pablum describing how he and his fellow educators were focused on “fostering an inclusive school environment that respects the rights and dignity of all students.”
“We also take seriously our responsibility to uphold constitutional principles, including the First Amendment,” Graham added. “While we strongly dispute any assertion that our policies or decisions violated the rights of any student, the Board of Education and District leadership, after careful consultation with legal counsel, have decided that the student in question will be permitted to proceed with her original senior parking space design.”
This was a lot of meandering words to admit that Christianity was supposed to get caught in the filter but every other belief of students was not. Amazingly, this wasn’t even the first time Steffans had been denied the expression of her faith at school. As Faithwire wrote of a previous incident, the Christian student had attempted to generate interest in a Bible club at school. It all amounted to her not even being surprised that the woke administrators turned her down
“The incoming high school senior said she wasn’t surprised by the first denial, as she runs the school’s Bible club and purports to have experienced times when the school turned down ads from her club. Steffans alleged it took her months to get the club started and that poster designs with Bible verses were previously rejected,” Faithwire reported.
Featured image: First Liberty