On "Fox and Friends" this morning we heard from two Tennessee high school cheerleaders who defied a ban on prayer before football games.

 

Oneida High School stopped prayers before athletic events due to the possibility of legal action from the ACLU or atheist organizations.

 

According to WBTW-TV, the school district received a letter from the ACLU last year, cautioning that school-sanctioned prayer is unconstitutional.

 

Instead, they now hold a moment of silence and the two senior cheer captains took it upon themselves to lead both squads and the crowd in reciting the Lord's Prayer.

 

The captains, Asia Canada and Alley Meyers, told Elisabeth Hasselbeck that prayer and faith means a lot to them and their community.

 

Meyers said she was "emotional" when she learned that prayers could no longer be recited over the PA system. She said the cheerleaders decided to keep it going on their own, and the whole crowd joined in.

 

"Our community needs God in it, especially at football games. We pray for the safety of each and every player out there and the cheerleaders and the fans for the drive home," she said.

 

Tennessee Cheerleaders Lead Football Crowd in Lord's Prayer, Defying School's Ban | Fox News Insider

Was this legal or not? Did they violate the ban? What should happen? Should the ACLU start legal action?

Seems legal to me.

Was this legal or not? Did they violate the ban? What should happen? Should the ACLU start legal action?

They did nothing wrong. The cheerleaders are not employed by the school.

Not school sponsored. Don't see a problem.

They did nothing wrong. The cheerleaders are not employed by the school.

 

The school has to be complicit by giving the cheerleaders air time and therefore in violation of the ban, correct?

The school has to be complicit by giving the cheerleaders air time and therefore in violation of the ban, correct?

 

School (or district) legally can't ban students from praying.

School (or district) legally can't ban students from praying.

 

So if a high school has 20 different religions represented among the student body each of them is entitled to one minute before each school sporting event to lead all the fans in attendance in a prayer of their choice over the PA system?

The school has to be complicit by giving the cheerleaders air time and therefore in violation of the ban, correct?

 

I read the article and it said they took away prayers over the PA system. It doesn't sound like they got any air time, merely that they stood around and everyone joined in.

So if a high school has 20 different religions represented among the student body each of them is entitled to one minute before each school sporting event to lead all the fans in attendance in a prayer of their choice over the PA system?

 

They weren't permitted to use the PA system here.

Fair enough Getslow, my mistake reading the article.

 

Either way, should all 20 religions get one minute to lead all the fans in attendance in a prayer of their choice?

Wasn't there a ruling in Texas some time ago saying that forbade student led prayer over school PA?

Fair enough Getslow, my mistake reading the article.

 

Either way, should all 20 religions get one minute to lead all the fans in attendance in a prayer of their choice?

 

I agree that it's pretty clear that the cheerleaders appear to have stood at midfield during this pretty thinly-veiled "moment of silence" and led the crowd in prayer. That said, what's the remedy? Cops with clubs at the 50 yard line?

 

In the end, I'm not much help with the prayer in schools thing. Catholics started our own schools more than a century ago when it became abundantly clear that the American school system wasn't going to cut it for us. Even as a Catholic, it's hard for me to really get geared up over school prayer. In fact, it's hard for me to get geared up one way or the other.

I agree that it's pretty clear that the cheerleaders appear to have stood at midfield during this pretty thinly-veiled "moment of silence" and led the crowd in prayer. That said, what's the remedy? Cops with clubs at the 50 yard line?

 

Absolutely! Thinly-veiled and in short an end around.

 

The solution, the ACLU needs to put that school in their sights, force it into court, and then we can all have a more concrete understanding of what is allowed and what is not allowed.

Anyone, should all 20 religions get one minute to lead all the fans in attendance in a prayer of their choice at every school sponsored event?