Just so everyone is clear: these books aren’t part of any curriculum. Kids aren’t forced to read them or listen to them being read. They’re just in the classroom. These people are freaking out just having their kids in a room near these books. If your “expression of religious freedom” is to prevent your child ever being exposed to ideas that might conflict with what you are telling them at home, then you should take them out of public school and lock them in a closet. But your faith must be pretty fragile if those are the sort of measures you have to take to sustain it.
Well no, the issue is the kids being exempt from reading them as part of a lesson or from being read to during story-time. They aren’t saying the books must be physically removed.
Pretty sure killing people violates religious tenets too, but they aren’t opting out of history classes are they?
They’re just assigning history textbooks that claim Africans came here voluntarily and were happy to work for white people for no pay.
As someone who was in Christian Schools/Home-School for my entire education, this is lowkey the real reason. Most won’t (openly) admit it, but the whole Christian school movement was a response to desegregation. Eventually the reasons would grow into “we don’t want our kids being taught Evolution” and now “we don’t want our kids learning that LGBT exist” but the original reason was desegregation and racism.
So unbelievably important to keep in mind that some of these plaintiffs were muslim. We cannot forget that the problem isn’t just evangelicals/catholics/christians. Muslims are just as hate-filled, backwards, and fucked up as the rest of these religious bigots.
I hope all these people rot in piss :)
Abrahamic religions are the problem. They’re pretty similar in doctrine and beliefs when it comes down to it.
Also important to note that Religion and Faith itself are not the problem. I’m not saying that you’re saying this with your comment, but I see on Lemmy the casual relationship between religion and bigotry to almost say religion equals bigotry and I don’t think that’s fair. A truly respectful and inclusive society should be able to include everyone.
I think Interfaith Alliance highlighted a good quote here from Rev. Raushenbush (president and CEO of Interfaith Alliance):
"I want my children to be introduced to the families and traditions of Muslims, Jews, and many other faiths and identities. There’s little doubt that Christian nationalist groups will soon seek the right to opt out from any educational content they object to. It’s a dangerous slippery slope that starts with discrimination against the gay community, but doesn’t stop there.”
Also they stated that the decision clears the way for further discrimination against diverse groups and undermines public education. While falsely claiming the mantle of religious freedom, it in fact suppresses diversity and promotes exclusion.
I think the biggest problem with your point is that these specific religions have core tenants that center around converting people and “saving” them. Because of that people will always be able to use whatever rationale they want to justify how they’re trying to save people when they’re bigoted towards them.
You might say that religion and faith isn’t the problem, and you’re right that it shouldn’t be the problem. But right now, it is the problem. Right now religion is used around the world to purely spread bigotry under the guise of “saving” the people they’re being bigoted towards.
In order for religion to not be used this way they would require massive reforms that would help push them towards a more genuinely accepting existence. But that won’t happen. At least not in any of our lifetimes. These religions are so old that they get to move as slow as they fucking want to when it comes to modernization.
Religion is being used constantly as justification for being horrible people and allows followers to think they have the literal creator of the Universe behind them. There is no world that exists in the next hundred or several hundred years that does not continue to have religion be used for horrible horrible things.
So fuck it. Are there some good people in there who just happen to believe in God? Absolutely. But religion as an organized structure is really fucking over modern society.
I don’t think religion and faith “are the problem.” But if I’m honest, I think they’re at least a little problematic. I think anything that encourages anti scientific beliefs or principles isn’t “good” for society. I don’t know I’d go so far to say it’s “dangerous”. I think anything that allows people to create in groups and out groups is not helpful, even if it does not overtly preach harming the out group. Any time spent bonding over religion or in religious community could be spent bonding over something more practical. I know a lot of people have found help through religion, but I can’t help but think how much better off we would be if instead of finding that sense of community within a religion we found it within our actual community. Instead of a constancy in a higher power, we found it and built it up within ourselves. Maybe there is no way to frame society so that people look within themselves and their community for strength they seek a higher power for, but I believe that as long as religion exists we will never know.
Also important to note that Religion and Faith itself are not the problem.
Keep telling yourself that.
Religion and faith ARE TOO the problem… Like it’s maybe THE biggest problem in the world.
Those interfaith folks need to do a heck of a lot more to redeem Religion and Faith in the eyes of those who can think clearly. When the majority of the religious (speaking of the US here) are deeply hateful, it calls the vaue of religion into serious question.
I’m gonna go to that school district and make out with guys in front of their schools.
This decision is one I actually agree with. While I have no objection to these books and I think that normalizing non-heterosexual relationships is good, the fact of the matter is that doing so violates the sincerely-held religious beliefs of some parents. Religious beliefs have special constitutional protections whether or not they’re viewed favorably by society. (Protection of only those beliefs viewed favorably is no protection at all.)
I find the school’s arguments that accommodating these parents is too impractical quite problematic, because if that were the case then schools would be required to refuse accommodations for every religious belief at least as difficult to accommodate as his one. I think some mainstream religious beliefs (dietary requirements, for example) could fall into that category.
While I have no objection to these books and I think that normalizing non-heterosexual relationships is good, the fact of the matter is that doing so violates the sincerely-held religious beliefs of some parents. Religious beliefs have special constitutional protections whether or not they’re viewed favorably by society. (Protection of only those beliefs viewed favorably is no protection at all.)
So what about the religious protection for everyone else who doesn’t fall into that group? You’re arguing that it should be eliminated? That Amendment specifically mentions freedom from religion as well so why aren’t you making the case for that here too? It sounds exactly like you’re arguing that the only people who should be offered protection are those who you view favorably.
I don’t think talking about a thing that goes against any individual religion should be considered protecting religion. If my religion teaches vegetarianism, can I opt out of any books where a character eats meat or hunts? Can I be exempt from learning about early humans or the food chain because it involves learning about their diet? The answer is now yes, and I think it does a huge disservice to children. Reading a book about a gay couple is not forcing you to be gay or even support homosexual relationships. It’s just showing you that gay people exist and that’s legal and some gay people have families and are happy. You can think it’s morally wrong, but it’s happening and it’s the schools job to educate children on things that are happening. I know people who were removed when evolution was discussed. They’re no longer religious, but they have this gap in understanding they now have to fill in because their parents didn’t want them to know the science. I think that’s terrible and does not help, but I support that more than the book thing because at least you can argue testing a child about evolution forces them to say things they don’t believe in whereas just reading or hearing about gay people doesn’t make you do anything.
Your faith has zero protection from being exposed to opposing ideas. That is fallacious. Have your faith, obey the law and allow me to live my life too. THAT is what the US Constitution allows.
Your god is a moron and it is my right to say that.
