Thanks to FFRF, a church banner on an elementary school fence in Long Beach, Calif., has been removed during school days.
A concerned community member informed FFRF that the MacArthur Elementary School was displaying a church banner on its fences for a church that meets at the school on Sundays. The banner was being left up during the school day when children were present.
“When a school displays a banner on its property advertising a worship service, it has unconstitutionally entangled itself with a religious message, here a Christian message. This alienates those non-Christian students, teachers, and members of the public whose religious beliefs are inconsistent with the religious messages being promoted by the school,” Legal Fellow Madeline Ziegler wrote to Long Beach Unified School District Superintendent Chris Steinhauser.
Steinhauser responded on Sept. 22 writing that the school had removed the sign and that the school’s principle informed the church that posting its signage is only allowed during the church’s use of the school facilities on Sundays.
