Florida —
FFRF reminded the Broward County Public School System of its duty to keep school events free from religion, after an outside speaker began promoting Christianity at an assembly meant to discuss financial literacy.
A district employee reported that on Feb. 27, Coral Springs High School held a student assembly in the school’s gymnasium that was ostensibly going to feature a guest speaker from Bank of America discussing the importance of financial literacy. FFRF learned that the Bank of America-affiliated guest speaker began the presentation with a religious invocation given “in the name of God,” and stated something to the effect of “whatever race, religion, creed you are … we all know that there is one God.” After the invocation, the guest speaker reportedly started to discuss the Lord’s Prayer, at which point administrators finally intervened, cutting off the speaker’s microphone.
“In this case, while administrators did eventually intervene, Coral Springs High School still violated students’ First Amendment rights by permitting a guest speaker to lead students in unconstitutional coercive prayer and promote his personal religious views to students,” FFRF Staff Attorney Sammi Lawrence wrote to the district.
After FFRF’s letter, general counsel for the district Marylin Batista responded to confirm that the district was aware of its First Amendment obligation to students. “The speaker, an employee from the Bank of America, was warned upon his initial mention of God, that he may not make any further religious statements during the assembly, and was subsequently escorted off the stage and removed off campus upon a second statement pertaining to the Lord’s Prayer,” Batista wrote. Batista confirmed that the school district is aware of its obligation to students, and did not intend for the violation to occur. The district is additionally taking steps to better vet future speakers, which includes providing a clear directive that speakers may not advocate for any particular religion or political cause while participating in a school function.
