Anti-Islam talk prompts ACLU, Wake school action
By: Naureen Khan
Issue date: 3/6/07 Section: News
Last update: 3/6/07 at 5:59 AM EST
Last update: 3/6/07 at 5:59 AM EST
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As part of an ongoing investigation, a Christian evangelist's appearance at a local high school has now sparked reaction from the American Civil Liberties Union.
During his Feb. 15 appearance at Enloe High School, Kamil Solomon denounced Islam and distributed pamphlets titled "Do Not Marry A Muslim Man, Part I" and "Jesus Not Muhammad, Part I" to teacher Robert Escamilla's social studies classes.
Escamilla, suspended with pay last week, awaits an internal review of the matter by the Wake County Public School System.
The case attracted the attention of the ACLU of North Carolina Legal Foundation when the father of an Enloe student filed a complaint against the high school.
The ACLU said it believes the incident is a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution, which forbids any government action that advances any one set of religious beliefs over another.
In a Feb. 22 letter to Enloe principal Beth Cochran, Azadeh Shahshahani, Muslim/Middle Eastern community outreach coordinator for the ACLU-NCLF, outlined the constitutional basis for the complaint.
"I am writing to ask that you provide us with a written assurance that such speakers engaging in unconstitutional conduct will never be invited again to Enloe High School," Shahshahani wrote.
In a brief response the next day, Adelphos Burns, superintendent of the WCPSS, wrote "appropriate actions" would be taken following a review of the incident.
"We are deeply disappointed by the manner in which the school has thus far handled these serious allegations," said Jennifer Rudinger, executive director of the ACLU-NCLF, in a Feb. 27 press release. "In the face of overwhelming evidence that proselytizing took place in this public school, school officials have insisted on miscasting this as a free speech issue."
The ACLU-NCLF has not received any written assurance to date.
"We need to assess what if any procedures were followed and/or violated, and we'll make the judgment afterwards," said WCPSS spokesperson Michael Evans. "Obviously this is a controversial subject, but we need to have a full understanding of the facts before we can make a decision."
During his Feb. 15 appearance at Enloe High School, Kamil Solomon denounced Islam and distributed pamphlets titled "Do Not Marry A Muslim Man, Part I" and "Jesus Not Muhammad, Part I" to teacher Robert Escamilla's social studies classes.
Escamilla, suspended with pay last week, awaits an internal review of the matter by the Wake County Public School System.
The case attracted the attention of the ACLU of North Carolina Legal Foundation when the father of an Enloe student filed a complaint against the high school.
The ACLU said it believes the incident is a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution, which forbids any government action that advances any one set of religious beliefs over another.
In a Feb. 22 letter to Enloe principal Beth Cochran, Azadeh Shahshahani, Muslim/Middle Eastern community outreach coordinator for the ACLU-NCLF, outlined the constitutional basis for the complaint.
"I am writing to ask that you provide us with a written assurance that such speakers engaging in unconstitutional conduct will never be invited again to Enloe High School," Shahshahani wrote.
In a brief response the next day, Adelphos Burns, superintendent of the WCPSS, wrote "appropriate actions" would be taken following a review of the incident.
"We are deeply disappointed by the manner in which the school has thus far handled these serious allegations," said Jennifer Rudinger, executive director of the ACLU-NCLF, in a Feb. 27 press release. "In the face of overwhelming evidence that proselytizing took place in this public school, school officials have insisted on miscasting this as a free speech issue."
The ACLU-NCLF has not received any written assurance to date.
"We need to assess what if any procedures were followed and/or violated, and we'll make the judgment afterwards," said WCPSS spokesperson Michael Evans. "Obviously this is a controversial subject, but we need to have a full understanding of the facts before we can make a decision."
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 4
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posted 3/06/07 @ 8:53 AM EST
Perhaps this speaker would be better to be brought in to a college campus presentation.
HOWEVER, what are the specifics of what he said that brought alarm? So, Chronicle the news is only the reaction to his presence or his speech, but the content of the presentation in your opinion is not pertinent, material, or appropriate to be provided to your readership? You are falling into dangerous territory, like other news organizations. (Continued…)
Tariq Butt
posted 3/07/07 @ 10:06 PM EST
Hello Ms Khan,
Thanks for covering this important story. I am the father of the 9th grader at Enloe who alerted the advocacy organizations (CAIR, ACLU, MAPAC) about this issue. (Continued…)
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