I just heard on the morning news that a five-year-old girl was kicked out of her Christian school when school officials found out her mother worked as a stripper. The school says that the mother had signed a document promising to promote good values (or something like that), and that her work as a stripper violated that contract; thus her child was expelled.
People are always saying, “It’s for the children!” But IMO the Christian school is saying, “It’s for the children… unless your five-year-old child is already damned, not because of anything she did, but because you’re an evil person. Take your kid to hell with you. Buh-bye.”
In other words, they have no power to directly punish the mother for her choice of jobs, so they’re taking it out on the kid. Opinions?
I think its disgraceful. As long as the mother isnt turning tricks in the school hallway, and the child is taken care of properly, who cares how mom makes her money to raise her child.
Television station: KNBC-4, Los Angeles
Country: USA
I didn’t catch the city, but I think it was in Orange County. In any case, it took place somewhere in L.A./Orange County.
Oh – Orange County (adjacent to L.A. County) was known as “Reagan Country” in the 1980s and early 1990s. People in L.A. call(ed) OC “Behind the Orange Curtain”, referring to its conservatism.
It is true, sad to say. The story was all over local television in Southern California. The school is in Alhambra, California (Los Angeles County), and the so-called Christians who run it should be ashamed of themselves. But bigotry of this kind is not uncommon in groups who think themselves singularly blessed with “the truth.” Interesting how many professed Christians are willing to take up the first stone…and throw it at an innocent little girl. That’s not to say that the child’s mother has done anythjing wrong. She’s better than any of the hypocrites who expelled her daughter.
The mother probably declined to “tithe” (give ten % of her earnings to the school). Had she done that, it’s likely all would have been forgiven. In the spirit of a loving and forgiving God, ya’ know.
Please, please tell me that if there is a lawsuit (and Coldfire, I think you’re right) that Johnny Cochran doesn’t jump on this one. What happened to that little girl is a crock, but the woman does not need to turn it into a circus. (although think of what it would do for her stripping career! “Appearing Tonight: Bunny, the Lawsuit Mommy!”)
Thus ends this mild hijack. You will now be returned to your originaly scheduled posting.
Not that I’m a big fan of fundies, but don’t religious schools get to discriminate in all sorts of ways? can a Christian school reject nonChristian applicants? What if the kid’s really young (say, five): can they reject the tyke if the parents aren’t Christian?
If so, why can’t they reject the kid if the parents eat pork, or watch Jerry Springer, or wear buttons, or strip publicly?
Personally, I figure it’s a good thing. The fewer kids that go to fundyschool, the better.
I realized after I hit the Submit button that Cochran is a defense lawyer. Either way, any pending lawsuit should not be turned into a big media event, but probably will. (even if only in California.)
-Dirty, slinking slowly out of the thread, apologizing profusely for the double-hijack
Poor little girl. Better though maybe for her to go to a more mainstream, less judgmental school. As she got older, what sort of cold-shouldering would she get from the extremer christian element in the playground for her mother’s profession?
Is this school a private school? (Fee paying?) If so, morally repugnant though this particular discrimination is, I reluctantly feel they have every right to do it. If their income depends on the continued satisfaction of the majority small-minded parents who would withdraw their custom rather than have their children associate with a “stripper’s daughter”, then fair enough - though all shame and contempt on them for their small minds.
If this is a public school paid for by the state/government then this is inexcusable.
In New Orleans, where I grew up, there are scads of Catholic schools at every level (K-8, high schools), and also some Methodist, Presbyterian, and Lutheran schools.
The public schools in New Orleans are hideous – mismanagment abounds and the pre-WWII facilities lack modern amenities like air-conditioning. So the many parochial schools fulfill the needs of many families in providing the best education available in the area.
The parochial schools in New Orleans fill the role that secular private academies and magnet schools assume in other parts of the country. Because of this, the parochial schools routinely admit students without regard for their families’ religious beliefs. The education in these parochial institutions is regarded as superior – therefore many Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist families send their children to Catholic schools. Nobody with any import locally has a problem with that.
The irony – New Orleans is also a town full of world-renowned night life … and accordingly plenty of strippers and high-end call girls. A good number of single women pursue these professions because, among other reasons, it helps them afford a Catholic-school education for their children. These “sinful” professions allow these women to give their kids a quality of life that would otherwise be difficult to afford – especially when there is no financially-involved father in the picture.
Understanding the realities confronting these women, and the opportunities local culture affords them, the Catholic institutions in New Orleans disregard the professions of these women – or at the very least refrain from asking probing questions – and fully allow the children of strippers and prostitutes to enroll.
I think the school has a right to expel the girl if the school contract says the mother has to promote good christian values. (Although I don’t recall the ten commandments saying anything about not shaking your booty for a profit) Yes, it’s entirely unfair to the daughter, and it’s stupid that they have that sort of a clause in the contract, but I think it’s pretty stupid to teach religion in school at all, so at least it’s consistent.
The only way the mom could win a potential lawsuit is to prove that she did promote good christian values in other ways, and that stripping is not at odds with the contract’s definition of good christian values. Or perhaps she could get the bible on her side; “The principal himself shaves his beard, which is expressly forbidden in leviticus. I challenge you to find anything in the bible which explicitly prohibits pole dancing, or picking up dollar bills with my vulva.” Oh, wait, the trial isn’t supposed to be a circus. Oops.
Seeing as this involved a Christian school, I’m going to assume this is a private school. I don’t think lawsuits will work too well against private schools because they are privately funded and they did lay out a “contract” stating “the mother will promote good values.” Since it is a privately funded institution, they can pretty much interpret that any way they want and just say so in court.
I agree with many of the previous posters though, I think the school could have shown more compassion in this matter. Kicking out a child because of her mother is uncalled for. One would be surprised at how much politics takes place behind the scenes in a private school… I know my high school (private christian school) was.
Nothing would satisfy me more than to see the mother and daughter win a huge lawsuit against the school. These extreme holier-than-thou, self proclaimed Christians in this school need a wakeup call.