ACLJ Defends TN School District Against ACLU Lawsuit

(Nashville, TN) - The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), focusing on constitutional law, said today it is pleased a federal court rejected a motion by the ACLU in an attempt to block a school-sponsored alcohol and drug awareness event at a Tennessee church.

The ACLJ represents the Sumner County Schools in Gallatin, Tennessee, which has been sued by the ACLU for alleged violations of the Establishment Clause.  The ACLU filed a motion for a temporary restraining order yesterday asking the federal court to halt a drug and alcohol awareness event sponsored by the Sumner County Schools to be held today at Long Hollow Baptist Church. The court denied the motion and the event was permitted to take place.  The court's order is posted here.

We are pleased that the Court recognized the reality that not all interactions between the government and religious entities violate the Constitution. When the government opts to use a religious facility for purely secular reasons, the fact that religious activities take place there at other times does not automatically result in an Establishment Clause violation, says ACLJ litigation counsel Carly F. Gammill, who is based in the ACLJ's Nashville office.

At the heart of this issue is complying with the U.S. Constitution, says ACLJ litigation counsel Wesley H. Southerland, also from the Nashville office.  We're confident that our client and its mission to educate children operate within the dictates of the Constitution. We will vigorously defend the school system against the allegations in the ACLU's complaint.  We remain committed to meeting the challenge of the ACLU and other organizations that seek to eliminate any vestige of religion from our culture.

Led by Chief Counsel Jay Sekulow, the American Center for Law and Justice focuses on constitutional law and is headquartered in Washington, D.C.