Posted by Eugene Volokh:
"School Children Singing the Praises of President Obama" (Apparently as a
Public School Class Project):
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_09_20-2009_09_26.shtml#1253897939
According to [1]Fox News,
The commissioner of New Jersey's Department of Education ordered a
review on Friday following the posting of a YouTube video depicting
school children singing the praises of President Obama.
Video of the students at the Burlington, N.J., school shows them
singing songs seemingly overflowing with campaign slogans and
praise for "Barack Hussein Obama," repeatedly chanting the
president's name and celebrating his accomplishments, including his
"great plans" to "make this country's economy No. 1 again."
One song that the children were taught quotes directly from the
spiritual "Jesus Loves the Little Children," though Jesus' name is
replaced with Obama's: "He said red, yellow, black or white/All are
equal in his sight. Barack Hussein Obama."
[EMBED]
There were apparently death threats sent to the principal; of course,
such threats are crimes, and should be punished. But I would hope that
those responsible for the school project are properly disciplined as
well; public school classrooms shouldn't be used to sing the praises
of any sitting (or recent) political figure, whether Bush or Obama or
anyone else.
That's not a constitutional matter -- there's no Establishment Clause
for political speech, and of course schools do routinely glorify past
political figures, whether Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, or what
have you. They also rightly express a calm respect for current elected
officials; when an official comes to visit, for instance, it's proper
for teachers to give the normal praise offered such visitors, and for
students to join in.
But that some degree of ideological indoctrination and glorification
is inevitable in government-run schools, and is in fact one of the
purposes of such schools (which have long been justified as means of
assimilating children into American democratic culture), doesn't mean
that it's proper to lead children in songs praising the current
President or particular aspects of his political agenda ("Hooray, Mr.
President we honor your great plans / To make this country's economy
number one again!"). I would have thought that this was pretty clear,
and it probably is to most teachers in most schools -- but not,
unfortunately, in this instance.
References
1.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/09/24/elementary-school-students-reportedly-taught-songs-praising-president-obama/
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