Students free to give out Bibles
Inside the First Amendment
By Charles Haynes
Senior scholar, First Amendment Center
01.26.97
Printer-friendly page
If the Gideons provide Bibles to students, may students give
them out in school? Harvey Daily, Spartanburg, S.C.
Yes. Generally, students have the right
to distribute religious literature on public school grounds.
The school, however, may impose reasonable time, place and manner
restrictions.
A public school in northern California, for example, allows students
to distribute literature to their classmates. But the distribution
must take place before or after classes begin, and it must be
done in front of the school office.
In some school districts, distribution of student literature
is confined to a table placed in a specific location (e.g., outside
the library). Whatever the restrictions, they should be reasonable
and must apply equally to all non-school student literature.
It would be advisable for school policies on distribution of
student literature to include a screening process. Public school
officials may not ban materials because they don't like the religious
or political content, but they may prohibit the distribution of
some literature altogether. This would include, for example,
materials that are obscene, defamatory, or disruptive of the educational
environment. Students should be notified quickly of the decision,
and they should have a way to appeal if their literature is banned.
What if the Gideons or other groups wish to come into the school
themselves and distribute their materials to students? According
to "A Joint Statement of Current Law," a statement endorsed
by more than 35 religious and civil-liberties groups: "Outsiders
may not be given access to the classroom to distribute religious
or anti-religious literature."
The common areas of public schools (e.g., hallways) may be a
different matter. A federal court in West Virginia recently ruled
that schools may allow outside religious groups to make their
literature available to students subject to some restrictions.
This particular school had allowed a variety of community groups,
including Little League and Boy Scouts, to leave literature on
a table in one of the school's common areas.
As long as (1.) no outside adults were actually present to distribute
the materials or to see that the students took them, and (2.) a
sign made clear that the materials were not being endorsed by
the school, the court ruled that treating the religious group
the same as all other community groups did not violate the establishment
clause of the First Amendment. No doubt this issue will continue
to be litigated.
While the question of whether outside groups may be allowed
to place their materials in the common areas of public schools
remains unsettled, it is important to remember that students
have the right to distribute religious literature, subject to
reasonable time, place and manner restrictions.
Your questions and comments are welcome. Write to:
Charles Haynes
The Freedom Forum First Amendment Center
1101 Wilson Blvd.
Arlington, VA 22209
E-mail: chaynes@freedomforum.org
Related
Gideons blocked from distributing Bibles to fifth-graders
Michigan school superintendent told group to stop annual practice after receiving complaint from ACLU.
05.27.02
Alabama county blocks in-school Bible distribution
Gideons representative says group will abide by decision but doesn't want any publicity for fear it would compromise Bible giveaways elsewhere.
11.23.02
Recent Charles Haynes columns
More Charles Haynes columns
