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School to second-grader: You may not sing ‘Awesome God’ at
talent show
ADF to defend 8-year-old girl who was denied her right to sing religious song
at New Jersey school talent show
ADF News Center--05/20/05
Talent shows typically provide the opportunity for participating individuals to showcase their talent. Unfortunately, at a school in New Jersey, a little girl is being told that her Christian song isn't worth hearing.
"You have to wonder why the school is allowing songs with mature sexual content in the talent show, which is clearly inappropriate subject matter for grade-schoolers, while censoring a child who wants to sing ‘Awesome God,’” said ADF Senior Counsel Gary McCaleb.
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.—Attorneys for the Alliance Defense Fund filed suit
against the Frenchtown, New Jersey school board for denying a second-grader’s
right to sing “Awesome God” at the elementary school’s talent
show, scheduled to take place tonight at 7 p.m. ADF attorneys requested a temporary
restraining order to allow the young student to sing her chosen vocal selection,
the popular religious song, “Awesome God,” made famous by the late
singer/songwriter, Rich Mullins.
“It is utterly absurd that we live in an era where parents need to go to Federal court in order to make sure their daughter can sing ‘Awesome God’ at her local school talent show,” said ADF Senior Counsel Gary McCaleb.
While nixing the girl’s chosen selection because of its religious content, school officials allowed other students to perform selections such as “You Give Love a Bad Name,” by rock band Bon Jovi.
“Here you have young children singing about loaded guns, and about ‘heaven’ in the context of secular, adult romantic relationships, and yet the school denies an 8-year-old girl’s song about heaven in the context of her personal faith,” said McCaleb. “This school’s talent show lineup also apparently includes children dancing to the song ‘Objection,’ by pop star Shakira. You have to wonder why the school is allowing songs with mature sexual content in the talent show, which is clearly inappropriate subject matter for grade-schoolers, while censoring a child who wants to sing ‘Awesome God.’”
Added McCaleb, “This is a clear violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments, and we hope the judge will give this brave little girl the green light to go ahead and sing her vocal selection at the talent show tonight.”
ADF is America’s largest legal alliance defending religious liberty through strategy, training, funding, and litigation.