ACLJ Gets Mass. School District to End Religious Discrimination Against Student Who Was Prohibited From Reading Book About Jesus.

Business Editors/Legal Writers

WORCESTER, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 16, 2003

The American Center for Law and Justice, an international public interest law firm, announced today that a Massachusetts school district that refused to permit a student to share a book with her class because the book contained the story of the birth of Jesus Christ has agreed to permit the student to exercise her religious beliefs without further discrimination.

The move brings to an end a religious discrimination lawsuit filed by the ACLJ on behalf of the student against the school district.

"We're pleased that the student will no longer be singled out and face discrimination for merely exercising her constitutional rights," said Vincent McCarthy, Senior Counsel of the ACLJ, which filed suit on behalf of the student. "This case is an important reminder that students do not shed their constitutional rights to express their religious faith when they enter the school house door. We are encouraged that the school district has agreed to do what it should have done from the beginning - protect the free speech rights of our client."

The ACLJ filed suit in July 2002 in U.S. District Court in Worcester, Massachusetts on behalf of Jessie and Robert Greska of Leominster and their daughter, Laura who attends Northwest Elementary School in the Leominster Public School District in Massachusetts.

The suit contended that when Laura was given an assignment in 2001 to bring a book to class about her Christmas traditions the teacher stopped Laura from sharing her book entitled "The Story of Christmas" by Sally Owen - a book that focused on the birth of Jesus Christ, the center of the Christmas holiday for Christians. The suit contended that while the school district permitted students to present books covering a wide variety of Christmas traditions, the teacher stopped Laura from reading further saying the book was not permitted because it was "religious." The complaint contended that the parents were told religious books were not permitted.

In a settlement agreement signed by both parties, the Leominster Public School District agrees that Laura "will be permitted to exercise her religious beliefs via speech (whether oral or written), if appropriate to an assignment, in all future school assignments" while attending any school in the district. Laura, who is 8-years-old, is currently in the third grade. As part of the settlement agreement, the ACLJ has asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit against the school district.

McCarthy said: "The settlement agreement ensures that the constitutional rights of our client are protected and sends a very important message that religious speech must not be singled out and treated differently than other speech in school."

The American Center for Law and Justice is an international public interest law firm specializing in constitutional law. The ACLJ is headquartered in Virginia Beach, VA and its web site address is www.aclj.org.