An Oklahoma governing board that oversees charter schools on Monday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a decision that bars the existence of the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school.
Attorneys representing the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court, requesting that the nation’s highest court decide on the fate of St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. They’re asking the Court to overturn a June ruling by the Oklahoma Supreme Court that blocked the proposed charter school from opening.
In its petition, attorneys with Alliance Defending Freedom, which represents the charter school board, argued on Monday that the U.S. Supreme Court faces two main questions.
The board is asking the high court to determine if the state violated the U.S. Constitution’s right to practice religion by excluding a privately-run school from its charter program and from accessing state funds solely because it is religious.
And, they’re asking the Court to decide if the academic choices of a privately-run school constitute “state action.” The filing questions whether the school’s academic choices are considered government action or control because it contracts with Oklahoma’s government and uses state funding to offer a free option for education.
At the heart of the case is the First Amendment.
At the heart of the religious school case and others like it is the Constitution’s First Amendment—and two provisions about freedom of religion that allegedly conflict.
First Amendment:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
Secularists claim the Constitution says there is a wall of separation. It doesn’t say that.
Alliance Defending Freedom is known for advancing religious liberty cases in court and played a role in overturning Roe v. Wade. The appeal may be a long shot. Justices are asked to review over 7,000 cases, but typically only consider 100 to 150.
“Oklahoma parents and children are better off with more choices, not fewer,” said Phil Sechler, senior counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom, in a statement. The group is known for its efforts to advance religious liberty cases and its role in overturning Roe v. Wade.
ACLU, FFRF, Ed Law. AU Object
Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, Education Law Center, and Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following statement concerning the petitions for certiorari granted today by the U.S. Supreme Court in Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board v. Drummond and St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School v. Drummond. The organizations represent faith leaders, public school parents, and public education advocates in a separate lawsuit to stop Oklahoma from sponsoring and funding St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.
“The law is clear: Charter schools are public schools and must be secular and open to all students. The Oklahoma Supreme Court correctly found that the state’s approval of a religious public charter school was unlawful and unconstitutional. We urge the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm that ruling and safeguard public education, church-state separation, and religious freedom for all. Oklahoma taxpayers, including our plaintiffs, should not be forced to fund a religious public school. It plans to discriminate against students and staff and indoctrinate students into one religion. Converting public schools into Sunday schools would be a dangerous sea change for our democracy.”
AU, the ACLU, ELC, and FFRF, with support from Oklahoma-based counsel Odom & Sparks PLLC and J. Douglas Mann, represent Oklahomans who object to their tax dollars funding a religious public charter school that will discriminate against students and employees based on their religion and LGBTQ+ status, won’t commit to adequately serving students with disabilities, and will indoctrinate students into one religion. In the District Court of Oklahoma County, these nine Oklahomans and OKPLAC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting public education, filed their lawsuit, OKPLAC, Inc. v. Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, on July 31, 2023.
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Wouldn’t this open the door to other “religions,” like the Church of Satan?
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