Parents sue Wisconsin school for barring religious holiday cards

By The Associated Press

03.23.01

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DELAFIELD, Wis. — The parents of an 8-year-old girl forbidden from giving classmates religious greeting cards during school hours sued the district yesterday, saying she was humiliated when the school made her take the gifts back.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Milwaukee, asks that second-grader Morgan Nyman be allowed to hand out religious material during the same time and in the same way as other students distribute secular material like Valentine's Day cards.

Halloween candy and cards handed out by Morgan last fall were confiscated by Cushing Elementary School's principal because of their religious messages, the lawsuit said.

Some of the cards had Morgan's name and a cross on them. Others pictured a frog with the message "F.R.O.G. — Freely rely on God."

Similar cards were forbidden on Valentine's Day, the lawsuit said.

Distributing religious material during school hours is a violation of church and state, said Mark Vetter, attorney for the School District of Kettle Moraine. If Morgan had asked to do so during lunch or before or after school she would have been allowed, he said.

"The distributing of religious materials during the school day to a captive audience of students is inappropriate and violates the rights of the other students," Vetter said.

But Liberty Counsel President Mathew Staver says the school cannot distinguish Morgan's cards from those of other students, featuring pop icons like Britney Spears. The Liberty Counsel, representing the family, is a conservative legal defense organization based in Orlando, Fla.

The lawsuit also listed Morgan's brother, Jared Nyman, 11, as a plaintiff. Staver said Jared wanted to give his sixth-grade classmates religious material but had not done so for fear of being punished.

Update

Wisconsin school board: Girl may hand out religious cards
District revises material-distribution policy, publicly apologizes to elementary student barred from giving Christian messages to classmates.  08.29.01

Related

Michigan school district to drop ban on religious handouts
Agreement to revise policy comes in wake of federal lawsuit filed by two students.  08.24.01