FFRF warning more than 1,000 school districts about new “Noah’s Ark”

[TipTok]

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is advising public schools in more than 1,000 school districts against visiting a new religious theme park.

The Ark Encounter, which is opening this week in Kentucky, is a Christian ministry run by the creationist Ken Ham, who also built the notorious Creation Museum. Ham has been clear about the proselytizing nature of this park from the beginning. In a recent letter entitled, “Our Real Motive for Building Ark Encounter,” he states it plainly: “Our motive is to do the King’s business until He comes. And that means preaching the gospel and defending the faith, so that we can reach as many souls as we can.”

FFRF is already receiving inquiries from concerned parents that overzealous teachers or principals may mistakenly believe it appropriate to schedule school-related trips to the Ark Encounter, as has happened with the Creation Museum. In order to allay such concerns and to remind public schools of their constitutional obligations, it is sending a memo to every school district in Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, West Virginia and Ohio.

Ham is free to erect monuments to the bible, but public schools are not permitted to expose the children in their charge to religious myths and proselytizing. So, public schools cannot organize trips for students to either the Creation Museum or the Ark Park. Doing so would violate the students’ rights of conscience and the U.S. Constitution.

http://ffrf.org/news/news-releases/item/27037-ffrf-warning-more-than-1-000-school-districts-about-new-noah-s-ark#sthash.nEGDRmea.dpuf

______________________________________________

Glad they sent this out... This is one of my hot buttons and I'd lay hard into the school district that tried to bring my kid to this.

[CrispyQ]

1. FFRF is a great organization.

I get their newsletter & this shit (using schools to get to young minds) happens all the time, all over the place! FFRF is a worthy organization.

[randome]

2. First thing that comes to mind these days when I see the word 'Freedom' in a group's name...

...is it must be some sort of right-wing crusading group. Obviously not in this case, however.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Birds are territorial creatures.
The lyrics to the songbird's melodious trill go something like this:
"Stay out of my territory or I'll PECK YOUR GODDAMNED EYES OUT!"[/center][/font][hr]

[Ilsa]

3. There is almost always a permission slip

for extracurricular trips, so parents can say "No" and request that kids not going have a movie day.

But overall, yes, the school should not be promoting this private business and its religion. Kids shou.dnt9be in the position of being left behind from field trips.

[TipTok]

5. Even proposing it is outside the boundaries...

Adding a permission slip to take a class to the local crack den doesn't make it better either.

[Ilsa]

8. Did you see my second paragraph?

I agree with what you are saying, and also showing that parents can protest this intrusion by saying "no."

[lapislzi]

13. It should never even get to that point.

No trips to sites that proselytize. That should not be an option for any public school. If all the field trips are to secular sites with the intention of promoting the learning of natural history, art, science, or other educational material, then no child would need to feel left out.

I can just imagine how the parents would be up in arms if a field trip was planned to an Islamic cultural center whose stated mission was to bring the word of the Prophet to the rest of the world.

This is not even worthy of discussion. Just no.

[TipTok]

18. That's the point...

It comes across like the reason you think is unacceptable is because a kid might get excluded.

The reason is that it is unethical and illegal and shouldn't even get past the first hurdle of oversight.

[exboyfil]

6. Permission slips don't cut it

School time and resources cannot be used to facilitate the teaching of religious doctrine.

[Ilsa]

9. I thought I was clear in saying that.

And also in saying that this is an opportunity for parents to let the school district know that they don't want this.

[exboyfil]

4. Already happening with the Creation Museum

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2016/04/public_schools_are_visiting_ken_ham_s_creation_museum.html

Which is a shame because the same resources could be used to send the children to this museum.

http://www.cincymuseum.org/sciencemuseum

Some of my greatest weekend trips with my kids involve going to a zoo and museum. Cincinnati has very good ones of both. I am sickened to think that parents are missing out on those opportunities for this. It is an outrage that public schools are participating. Churches are free to bring their kids to these attractions. Why public schools as well? It is insane.

[Logical]

7. FFRF is a great group! Nt

[TygrBright]

10. I find this guy's name just SOOOOOOOoo ironic. Ham. n/t

[Jitter65]

11. Ok, just want to ask this. If it is ok to send or allow kids to attend all other kinds of

fantasy parks and theme parks, what is so wrong about a "Christian" theme park? Are folks at the park trying to make visitors Christians? I find it more appealing to send a kid to cowboy theme park where guns and Native American dissing is on display.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

12. News Flash: Christianity is a religion

Yes, the folks at the park are proselytizing. Read the damn excerpt. Then read up on "separation of church and state" with regard to PUBLIC schools.

"more appealing" to send to a gun theme park? Surely you mean "appalling"? PROOFREAD! Spell-check is for lazy. Think twice, post once, not the other way around.

[lapislzi]

14. I know I am old.

But I don't remember any field trips to amusement parks, theme parks, or anything like that. We went to museums. We went to geological sites. Historic sites. We went to the zoo. The planetarium. Even the ballet once.

Maybe we went to a theme park, crappy as they were back in the day, once or twice with the Girl Scouts, but that was strictly outside of school. It was with Scouts that we made the rounds of various houses of worship around town and I met people of other faiths. It was very clearly understood (by me, anyway) that, unless you attended a religious school daily (which I didn't), religion was something for outside of school. It was on your own time and on your own dime.

[pepperbear]

21. sorry, but I think folks at the park ARE INDEED trying to "make visitors Christian."

[mrmpa]

15. Are there still school field trips?....

I know there are, however I taught in an inner city school (read poor, primarily African-American) district. I taught High School History. We have an excellent Soldiers and Sailors Museum. It has exhibits, etc. from the Civil War to the current wars. They have an excellent WWII program, where we would split up into teams, with platoon leaders, maps & other supplies and each group would study a specific battle, such as D-Day, Iwo Jima & others. It was going to cost the school all of $75 (lunches at the museum) the Museum was supplying me with a grant for the bus.

I got a resounding NO from the Principal. My students rarely if ever left their neighborhood, let alone visited a museum. I even offered to pay for half the cost of lunches, still a NO. I then said I would pay for all of the lunches, still a NO.

[TexasBushwhacker]

17. The time away from campus is regulated in Texas

Most principals at the middle and high schools reserved that precious time for activities that would bring home trophies, mostly sports. Anything that was just for educational purposes was never approved.

[TryLogic]

16. For parents and families, a visit might offer a teachable moment --

religious mythology, religious groups' efforts to manipulate others, etc.

[Locrian]

19. agreed

Certainly not afraid of it. We inoculated our kids many years ago to the teachings of religion: they find it very amusing in a "South Park" sort of way.

[OriginalGeek]

20. on a side note:

Ken thinks dinosaurs were on the ark.


and they got a LOT of public money to help build the park.