TIPTON, Mo. — A complaint about prayer at public school meetings has brought the small town of Tipton, Mo. to its feet, with the community expressing nearly univocal outrage that the school district appears to be caving to outside pressure.
Hundreds of citizens attended a “Stand Up for Tipton” town hall meeting, organized by the Concerned Citizens for Tipton group, held Thursday, Sept. 9 in Tipton in response to the Tipton R-VI School district's giving in to demands made by a Wisconsin-based group, the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF).
A letter sent to the board of education by the FFRF in July called “upon board members to immediately refrain from scheduling prayers as part of future board meetings and they were told not to include ‘Blest be the Tie That Binds’ song at future school sponsored events.” The song was part of a Tipton High School Candlelight Awards Program in May, 2016. A picture of Jesus that has hung in the school for 70 years was also removed. The picture was donated to the school by a family as a memorial to a son they lost to polio.
According to Tipton R-VI School District Superintendent Daniel Williams, the request came after a complaint was filed with the FFRF. Neither Williams nor the spokesperson/staff attorney from the FFRF, Patrick Elliot, would say whether the complaint was made by more than one person. FFRF bylaws state the purpose of the foundation is to “promote the constitutional principle of separation of state and church, and to educate the public on matters relating to non-theism.”
Stand Up for Tipton Co-Founder Sherry Kuttenkuller explained that the term “separation of church and state” is not in the U.S. Constitution. “It was a phrase coined by Thomas Jefferson in a letter addressing the problem of the state controlling the church. He didn’t want to end up with the same thing that happened in Great Britain where the king became the head of the church and the state controlled the church.”
Kuttenkuler added that the purpose of the town hall meeting was not to protest but to educate citizens on their constitutional rights. “We cannot allow bullies to change our traditions,” Kuttenkuler charged. Tipton R-IV District Superintendent Daniel Williams said he was there to dispel circulating rumors.
Williams said that while the changes being made may not be something they agreed with, he understood that there were court rulings on the two practices with regard to the ‘establishment clause’ where the district is illegally promoting a particular religion at school. Williams said the district did not want to get into a $500,000 court case. A citizen asked if the district had looked into law firms that will defend such cases for free. Williams said he had only consulted school attorneys.
Kuttenkuler commented, “The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. Our founding fathers meant the separation of church and state to keep government out of religion, not religion out of government.”
Kuttenkuler then handed out signs that read, “We the People” and she asked the crowd to repeat the phrase when she did. “It is up to we the people in the community to stand up and say no,” she said. She cited several cases happening right now in Missouri where student/school official rights were be taken away. “All the power in the government starts with we the people. The BOE represents we the people. They are elected officials.”
“I appreciate all the comments,” Williams told the people. “We are here to serve and we are caught in the middle, in a vice-grip. We are taxed with upholding the law and educating students. Parents are the ones who instill values and morals,” Williams said. He added that students were free to initiate prayer and/or music as long as it did not create a disruption. But, he said, “We cannot have our staff or board members initiating prayer.”
According to Elliot, more than half of the issues that come before the FFRF are related to school activities and that amounts to several hundred per year.
Citizen comments:
- Why were parents and taxpayers not informed nor involved in the decision?
- It is ridiculous that one person can change a 70 year tradition.
- Adults are supposed to lead children, not the other way around. This is a Christian nation and God is the reason we are a great nation. We are raising a crop of great children.
- Singing a song and a picture are not disruptions.
- I moved here from Chicago because I wanted to live in a Christian community. To me, seeing our coaches praying with their athletes is one of the most touching things I have ever seen.
- Stand fast in your liberty without liberty you have nothing. All it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.
- When students walk into schools they do not give up their constitutional rights.
Several citizens commented that good things have come from the controversy and the community has united together. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes meetings have increased in number and students are standing for what they believe in and getting involved in the process.
The Tipton basketball players created a t-shirt that says, “God Matters” on the front with the bible verse, Galatians 5:1 – “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.” Some students have reported that a principal told them that if a student is offended by the t-shirt they will be forced to take it off.
Kuttenkuler added, “They are not going away. Once you give in to the demand of bullies they will come back again and again.” She gave the attendees the following suggestions as they move forward:
- Understand that the power of the government was given by God to we the people.
- Get creative. Citizens can volunteer to pray at board meetings and sporting events.
- Understand your rights. It was a mistake for the board to act unilaterally, without the input of we the people. These are our children.
- Have a third entity rent the school and host the graduation ceremony.
- Public prayer is the right of all citizens, school officials and students.
- Stand strong or they will take away more of our rights.
- The BOE should take preemptive measures to wean the district off federal funds because federal money comes with strings and conditions.
- Get involved in the political process by calling, writing and emailing legislatures to keep them within the confines of the constitution.
- Attend BOE and legislative meetings.
- Be empowered by being informed of your rights. There are steps we can take to protect our students.
- Elect strong Christian conservatives and hold them accountable. Don’t just elect them, continue to watch them.
She ended by saying, “Stand fast in your liberty. Let’s turn this into an opportunity to restore the proper authorities of we the people and exercise our God given liberties, let us glorify God and solidify our Christian heritage here in Tipton.”
