Recruit, Recruit, Recruit!

It's back to school time and religious fundamentalists in Texas are salivating. Why? Because of what the Houston Chronicle terms the "insidiously named Religious Viewpoints Antidiscrimination Act," which has given them a license to recruit new believers in schools.

This new law requires Texas school districts to adopt a policy under which certain student leaders must be given opportunities to speak at all school events at which students speak publicly, including graduation, football games and morning announcements and, as the Houston Chronicle put it, "[provide] an open mic to express their religious beliefs. " The Chronicle goes on to say that "The law's true accomplishment will be the creation of state-sanctioned forums for students who wish to pray and proselytize to captive audiences...Students could cite their religious convictions to condemn gay and lesbian students. They could promote their faith as the only true religion. They could pray for the conversion of specific students. They could even promote atheism, Satanism or paganism... It would allow students to hector nonbelieving children over schools' public address systems and encourage bullying of nonconforming peers."

Was such a law needed? Well, as the Chronicle put it, "Students already have the federally protected right to voluntary prayer and discussion of their religious convictions. The 1984 Equal Access Act allows public school students to form special-interest clubs, including faith-based clubs, and to meet on campus."

But I guess voluntary participation wasn't good enough for these folks, as they want everyone to have to believe the way they do. This should come as no surprise to anyone. Fundamentalist Christians have never been shy about their desire to recruit children. In fact, they spent nearly $200 million in 2006 ($199,891,024, to be exact) to fund just one group designed to do so, "Young Life," an organization whose vision is that "every adolescent will have the opportunity to meet Jesus Christ and follow Him." Young Life operates in 3,921 schools and has 3,171 staff (almost exactly 1,000% more than my organization, GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network). The 358 Young Life school chapters in Texas must be thrilled: they now have an open mic at every school event to where they can help their misguided nonbelieving captive classmates to "meet Jesus Christ and follow Him."

And the Young Life crowd isn't above a little "baiting and switching" to suck young people in. My niece participated in Young Life activities at her high school in Ohio -- for a while. At first she was told she could just take part in the activities: but as time went on she was increasingly "witnessed" to about Jesus and pressured to leave the Catholic Church and become a fundamentalist. She eventually quit because it was apparent to her that it wasn't about the camping trips and "fellowship" -- it was about getting her to leave her Church and go to theirs.

The irony is that fundamentalists have often opposed efforts to reduce the billing and harassment of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students by saying this is just an effort to "recruit" people. Aside from being total nonsense, this claim -- when viewed in light of the new Texas law -- shows that these folks are total hypocrites. Fundamentalists are the ones who are all about recruitment. And the new law represents a "coming out of the closet" about that, I suppose.

As the Chronicle put it, "Texas' Religious Viewpoints law ... foist[s] what were once voluntary activities on others who might not share their peers' faith." Rather than be upset by this analysis, fundamentalists would say: "Exactly!"

God help us all.

Comments

[jgiddyup]

Just another example of why I've become politically active after years of just casting my vote.

The religious wrong is trying to make this a theocracy and history has proven it's never worked or been beneficial to human development overall.

While I'm agnostic with a heavy lean towards atheist (even though raised catholic) I've in the past been a live and let live person for the most part. It was the intelligent design crap in PA ans KS last year that sparked my political fire and I've had it. The gloves are off and I will denounce religion to every politician I communicate with and I will denounce it in my personal life every time it comes up in conversation until it's completely or nearly so eradicated from politics.

Keep it out of politics and if someone and a few million of their friends want to walk on hot coals and set their hair on fire than have at it. Try and have religious doctrine/dogma influence or be used as public policy and I will literally fight to the death to keep that from happening.

I hope that every person in those schools with a cause to promote ties up every school function for hours on end with nothing but inane blather (some will say just like this post).

[Lon]

The law as passed is clearly unconstitutional based on past supreme court rulings. Perhaps they are hoping that the courts move to the right has gutted the relevant supreme court rulings. More likely there is political gain in passing such a law even if its only effect is to cost the state a lot of money defending it while it is overturned.

That said, there is something wrong with the suggestion in the post that it is recruitment that is itself morally objectionable. Given the beliefs of evangelical christians, it is rather natural that they would try to recruit. (In fact it is what the evangelical part means). And there is nothing wrong per se with people who think they have a better way of living trying to convince other people to live better. There is a problem with letting them use the power of the state to do their recruiting. But if what they are doing is creating fun clubs which show off the advantage of their lifestyle, there is nothing wrong with that.

The problems with the "Homosexuals recruit" charge is its falseness, and some of the consequence behind mistaking it for true.

[obstreperous1]

A blatant infringement on religious freedom. This should make it into court in short order.

[Qbear]

The school districts which think they will adopt this program might as well set up a section to seat TEAMS of ACLU lawyers to monitor their program and it's detailed guidelines,,,cuz thet'll be there with BELLS ON.

[Qbear]

I went and researched this insane law, which is so full of conditions on which specific student leaders may speak and randomly drawing them for a week, that a reasonably trained lawyer could rip it to pieces. Why does the prom queen get to give her religious views and another student can't, or the football coach can and the chess team can't. They keep repeating through their Model guidelines either orally or in writing will be read or handed out...I'd insist on both at each event.

[Qbear]

First, you deserve immense pride for GLSEN.
The way I would counter this open mic for religious viewpoints is to have 30-40 students each claim to speak for a different religion, and insist at EVERY event they be given equal time to speak. This should add HOURS to every boring tedious school event, at which the Christian Reich wants to spew their message. Making them sit through Muslim, Hindu, Shintu, Buddhists, Mormons, Jews both Orthodox and Reformed,Amish, Wicca, Methodist, Catholic, Lutheran, Calvinists,church of Christ MCC,etc...­, should make the whole thing unbearable and ridiculous.

[Quaoar]

They want you! They want you! They want you as a new recruit!

[GoodwithWood]

This one is going to be a mess that will create more public backlash against fundies and there crusade to turn the US into a fascist theocracy.

I hope

GWW

[camb94]

Wouldn't the best way to fight this law be to get students to start other clubs that would get equal billing time to proselytize all of the things that get the fundies panties in a bunch. Say a gay church, or a sexually promiscuous church and invite all student to meet? It seems that would get the law a closer re-examination