Discrimination Made Legal.

Religiously oriented schools that serve as Head Start centers could base hiring on religion, bill says

"But the religion provision, added Thursday by the House Education and Workforce panel on education reform, is the latest to cause a partisan divide over a program that has helped roughly 20 million children develop literacy and social skills.

The bill has an anti-discrimination clause, but it would not apply to groups in hiring people whose religion could affect the organization's work. The idea is backed by a court ruling and intended to keep religious groups from dropping out of the federal program, said Rep. Mike Castle, R-Del., the bill's sponsor. "

www.sfgate.com.../news/archive/2003/06/12/national2009EDT0816.DTL

Just one question, if religion isn't to be a topic in the headstart curriculum, why is someone's religious beliefs an issue?

Originally posted by dawnstar
Just one question, if religion isn't to be a topic in the headstart curriculum, why is someone's religious beliefs an issue?

I had a 5th grade teacher who was a fire and brimstone Southern Baptist. Now this was in a public school system. No religious instruction allowed right? Religion wasn't a topic in the curriculum. Wrong. She spent 15 minutes everyday preaching on the virtues of Jeeezus, until my Mother found out and threatened to sue the school system. That teacher was infringing on my civil rights. She was aware that what she was doing was prohibited. She thought her beliefs were more important than my rights.

The point of that little story is to demonstrait that there are those who think that their beliefs and their desire to indoctrinate you with them are more important than your right to not only have Freedom of Religion, but Freedom FROM Religion in this country if you so choose. In other words, I don't want you using my tax money to further your religious indoctrination goals.

Someone's religious beliefs are an issue because too many religious people break the rule that prohibits any public money from funding religious instruction. Frankly, I don't believe that a cult like Christianity is qualified to handle my children's philisophical education nor would I ever give them permission to do so.

This simply means religious schools (such as Catholic schools) who only hire people from their own religion as teachers (nuns) can get federal funding for Head Start programs.

Originally posted by djohnsto77
This simply means religious schools (such as Catholic schools) who only hire people from their own religion as teachers (nuns) can get federal funding for Head Start programs.

I see that as a pretty negative issue. Due to my personal experience with this type of thing, I believe that religious institutions and those voluntarily enslaved to them have no problem using their version of "God's" laws to justify breaking Man's laws. In short, I don't trust them to not take it to the next step of indoctrination. I object to my tax money being used in this way.

Originally posted by djohnsto77
This simply means religious schools (such as Catholic schools) who only hire people from their own religion as teachers (nuns) can get federal funding for Head Start programs.

For some reason, I don't think the Catholics are the ones who are having a problem. One of the biggest organizations in Central NY working in the social service area is Catholic Charities, and they've been working since before Bush came into office. Social Services will refer people to them for counseling, parenting classes, afterschool actiivities, and a whole mess of services. As far as I know they don't recieve money directly from the Government, they are funded through the church and private donations. But, well, they do get paid for many of the services, by the recipient in many cases, but if they can't afford it well, they have no problem taking medicaid and the like. But the main point is, they are, and always have been taking referrals from Social Service.
And, they hire people of many different faiths, not just catholics.

I'm in Amish country, and I think there are Amish businesses that hire only Amish. And I hardly see any white people working at Chinese restaurants. I see all Mexicans working at the Mexican restaurants around here.

Don't we have freedom of association or something? I see no problem with it.

Discrimination against anybody that is not from the same racial groups or reglious groups or schare the same churches will bring abuses on segregation.

And this will not be on black and white issues but anything that has to do with who do you relate with, be political, religious or racial meaning other races.

The bill will bring the ugliness of all these as usual.

We human are just but humans give humans a way to exercise segregation by law as hiring only people that share the same religous views as in this instance and is bound to happen.

Originally posted by Amethyst
I'm in Amish country, and I think there are Amish businesses that hire only Amish. And I hardly see any white people working at Chinese restaurants. I see all Mexicans working at the Mexican restaurants around here.

Don't we have freedom of association or something? I see no problem with it.

Do I really need to explain the differences between the Head start program, Amish businesses, and chinese and mexican resturants....okay, here it goes...

1. the head start program is funded mostly with taxpayer dollars...I doubt if the Amish ask the gov't for much of anything outside of they be left alone, but well, if they had the mindset of the christian right, that'd probably be demanding nice new roads to drive their horse driven carriages down. So, how many mexican or chinese resturants do you know relying heavily on tax dollars to operate?

2. If I don't want my kids to be exposed to the chinese or mexican language, or culture, well, it's simple, just take them to pizza hut instead, there won't be much in long lasting bad effects from such moves.. Head start on the other hand, well, it takes in at-risk kids....at risks of being educational handicapped later if they aren't intervened with now. there are income guidelines that must be met to prove that the parents don't have the means to intervene on their own, and testing is done to show that there are warning signs present that this child might have a problem. Then throughout their headstart experience, these children are tested, and retested, observed.....and I imagine, many have been saved from having to start out their tradition schooling being labeled handicapped or far behind their peers. My kid won't be harmed by never going to a mexican resturant, but just might be if they are denied headstart. and, sadly enough, their isn't enough funding for every kid, so some will miss out.

3. this is taxmoney being used for this program, a program that is being run for the good of everyone, in my opinion! I expect the government to get all the bang it can for it's bucks!. To pass by 20 very well qualified teachers for the one that just happens to suite your religous preferences isn't acceptable to me! if that mexican resturant, or chinese resturant wishes to run their business in such a manner, fine, they are only hurting themselves. but if it's done in the headstart, it will hurt us all!!

discrimination has and always will happen in the world. but, it shouldn't be encouraged or made legal by the government, and my tax money shouldn't be what is paying thier salaries!

like I said, why hire only those of your faith, if you don't intend on inserting your faith into the curriculum. the funds don't meet the need now, and it's not like a new pair of shoes that you can easily go without if you have to. and no parent should be forced to decide between having their child be exposed to religious propaganda or having that child go without needed services that are intended to make his chances of success later in life more positive.

[edit on 1-10-2005 by dawnstar]

I am against any affirmative action. That in itself is discrimination. I don't care about quotas. If you have all whites, so be it. If you have all blacks, so be it. Giving someone a job should be based on qualification.

I myself was the victim of discrimination--and I'm primarily white (little bit of Cherokee thrown in). I worked at a fast-food joint in the Detroit suburbs, where I was the only white employee. The manager flat-out told my dad that black girls work better than white girls.

Wrong thing to say to my dad.

yep, well, having the chirstian right wanting the freedom to legally descriminate does little to assure me, or anyone else, that some sort of laws aren't needed to prevent is from happening, or at least try to. you don't like affirmative action, well the best way to get rid of it is for you personally do the things necessary to decrease it's need for being, not increase it. same with the social service programs.