Today in 1948: The Supreme Court invalidates religious instruction in public schools
March 8, 2013
... McCollum’s example of “excessive” government “entanglement” with religion is what is known as “released time” – time set aside by public schools to allow students to attend religious instruction ...
Vashti was the mother of James McCollum, a fourth grader at the time. Vashti and her husband John didn’t allow James to participate in any of the religious instruction offered at the school.
During the time that these classes occurred, James, being the only student in his class who did not participate in the religious instruction, was forced to wait alone in the hallway during the classes. In addition, James faced ostracism from teachers and students because of his lack of participation.
McCollum’s challenge failed within the Illinois state courts system, with the Illinois Supreme Court finding that, because the classes were voluntary, there was no constitutional violation. Further, the state high court held that, while the government cannot favor one religion over another, it can (and should) certainly favor religion over irreligion (the Supreme Court made the opposite conclusion in 1994’s Board of Education of Kiryas Joel Village School District v. Grumet) ...
http://westlawinsider.com/legal-research/today-in-1948-the-supreme-court-invalidates-religious-instruction-in-public-schools/
