Hartford Courant (CT) - ACLU Sues Enfield Over Plans To Hold Graduations At Church
By Shawn Beals, The Hartford Courant
ENFIELD Two national advocacy groups are suing the Enfield Board of Education for its plans to hold high school graduations at a Bloomfield church next month. The federal suit also seeks to prevent the two graduations from taking place at First Cathedral.
The suit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State, was announced by the groups this morning.
Andrew Schneider, director of the ACLU of Connecticut, said, "This is an important case because it bears on the proper relationship between religion and government.
"It funnels public money to a particular house of worship, and it forces students of many different faiths to attend a graduation ceremony that reflects one specific faith. It's not just about the minority religions."
The ACLU and Americans United threatened in November to sue the school district if it continued with its plans to again hold the graduation ceremonies at First Cathedral. They said the ceremonies for the town's two high schools should be moved to a secular location.
"No student or parent should have religion imposed on them as a price of attending their own graduation," said Alex Luchenitser, senior litigation counsel for Americans United. "Every student should be able to fully enjoy their high school graduation no matter what their religion is."
After months of discussion about alternatives, the school board voted last month to hold the graduations at the church despite the threat of a lawsuit. Board members said that time and money played a big role in their decision not to move the ceremony, because the graduations are fast approaching and other sites were more expensive.
"I think it's misguided, at best," said Vincent McCarthy, senior Northeast counsel for the Washington-based American Center for Law and Justice. "First Cathedral is about the most neutral church I've ever been inside in my life."
The Enfield school board appointed the center for law and justice to defend it against any lawsuits related to the graduations. The group has promised to defend the board for free.
"We're confident that a court in looking at the case would say this is not something that looks like the state endorsing religion," McCarthy said.
McCarthy said the suit surprised him because he thought the case could be settled outside of court. The school board and McCarthy plan to meet tonight for an update on the case. The meeting had been scheduled before the lawsuit was filed.