Cheerleading has a lot of rich traditions, and, for some people, one of those is religion. But some cheerleading squads have run into trouble recently for expressing their faith at games. Oneida High School in Tennessee used to pray over the loudspeakers before games. Last year, the district stopped the practice to avoid lawsuits after receiving a letter from the American Civil Liberties Union informing them that it is unconstitutional to hold school-sanctioned prayers. The letter reminded Oneida and other schools in Tennessee that the First Amendment prohibits public schools from promoting a religion. “It is well settled that school faculty, coaches, administrators or invited clergy may not lead students in prayer or conduct a prayer during a school event,” the letter read. The school started doing a moment of silence before games instead. The Oneida High cheerleading squad started reciting the Lord’s Prayer during that time, and, at last Friday’s game, the opponent’s cheerleading squad and other spectators joined in. “In that moment the atmosphere was kind of great because it was nothing but heads bowed, and you heard the Lord’s Prayer ring over the football field,” junior Oneida cheerleader Kayla King told WATE. The school’s football announcer, Kevin Acres, said he understands why the school district stopped holding a prayer before games, but “the majority of people in this area want to have prayer before a ball game, and I don’t think its right for a minority out away from here to dictate what we do here,” said Acres. You can read more on this story from WATE. What do you think? Would the district be violating the Constitution by reinstating the school-sanctioned prayer, or if most of the community is of that faith should the school be allowed to promote it?
Should schools be able to pray before football games?
