ACLU WARNS SCHOOLS AGAINST STUDENT PRAYER

The American Civil Liberties Union said it has sent a letter to
15,000 public-school superintendents warning them that the law
forbids student sponsored prayer at official graduation ceremonies.

The letter, mailed at the end of April, seeks to rebut the claim by
evangelist Pat Robertson's American Center for Law and Justice that
prayer at graduation ceremonies is legal if sanctioned by a student
vote.

Robertson's group has also vowed to dispatch what it calls "SWAT"
teams to communities around the country to tell school and government
officials that "student-initiated prayer" is a constitutionally
protected right.

Ira Glasser, executive director of the ACLU, said, "In his zeal to
force all Americans to follow his beliefs, Pat Robertson is seriously
distorting the law and sending dangerous messages to the nation's
students and educators."

RELIGION BRIEFS
THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC
SATURDAY, MAY 15,1993