A federal court has suspended a Florida school's policies that banned a student from handing out invitations to an Easter egg hunt. The case against the district, however, is not over.
Matt Sharp of the Alliance Defending Freedom has been defending a fourth grader's rights to distribute invitations to religious events ( see earlier story). He says the lawsuit against the Hillsborough County School Board seeks to make the preliminary injunction against unconstitutional restrictions permanent.
"So far we haven't had any response from the school in all of this," Sharp reports. "We're hoping that they will do the right thing, now that the court has ruled on this, and agree to strike down these policies permanently and allow our client to engage in religious expression at school, along with all other students in the Hillsborough County schools."
The ADF attorney points out that elementary-age students have the same constitutional free-speech rights as adults.
"Students have the right to engage in religious speech at school," he notes, "and schools should be welcoming the free exchange of ideas among students, whether it's an Easter egg hunt invitation or anything like that at school."
Last March, the principal at Roland H. Lewis Elementary prevented the defendant from handing out Easter egg hunt invitations, even though others are routinely allowed to distribute invitations to non-religious events.