Christian Choi
May 1, 2014 Thursday
News Story #4
4th period
Argument has been arisen in Leaguetown ISD because Leaguetown ISD has a dress code that
goes against the right to exercise religion, as it is said in the First Amendment. The tension grew, and the
American Civil Liberties Union is willing to support Stacy Carol, who was suspended both outside and
inside of school for wearing lip-piercing jewelry which represents her religious practice.
“I don’t understand why the district won’t drop this,” Stacy Carol said. “I have never been
suspended. I just want to get back to class. You choose how you want to express your faith.”
Stacy Carol, sophomore, gnashes her teeth for what she proclaims as ‘faultless act.’ A perfect
student with clean record of school life would definitely takes herself into coma for how her truth
wouldn’t be let in into the hearth of the dress code in Leaguetown ISD. Taking her stance, Carol rises
against the great wall of district law. However, this act is just to be seemed as childishness from the eyes
of Jett Ramirez, the constitutional lawyer.
“Just because a few people get together and call themselves a church doesn’t mean they are a
church in the eyes of the law,” Mr. Ramiriez said. “Heck, in Australia, there is a movement for a Jedi
church. Does that mean we have to allow all teenage boys to wear Jedi Knight robes and carry light
sabers to school? The U.S. Supreme Court seriously weakened the reach of the free-exercise clause in
1990 by ruling that government no longer must show a ‘compelling state interest’ before denying a
religious exemption to an otherwise neutral, generally applicable law.”
Even though Mr. Ramirez is a veteran lawyer of constitution, he strongly objects that wearing
something so inapt for the school outlook should not falter the district-made decision for religion to be
an excuse. Making foundation of his point on this matter, Mr. Ramirez disagrees with what ACLU lawyer
Sonia Stephens brings about. Based on what Ramirez spoke of, the government should not exempt the
applicable law that has been written ever since the constitution was lastly edited.
Christian Choi
May 1, 2014 Thursday
News Story #4
4th period
“It is in the best of interest of the school district to allow her a religious exemption from the
dress code,” Mrs. Stephens said. “The district doesn’t have much to stand on since it already has two
religious exemptions on file.”
Regardless of what Mr. Ramirez has said, Mrs. Stephens wanted to protect Carol’s right to show
up her religion. Should there be an option for excluding what Carol requires for when there already has
been several exemptions for the students’ rights for their religious beliefs. And yet, looking into what
the voice from the school has to say, Amina Shakuri affirms what wrong there is for Carol’s action.
“I don’t think you can compare the Muslim religion to the Church of Body Modification,” Amina
Shakuri said. “There are more than a billion Muslims worldwide. Our beliefs are documented. I don’t
have a problem with Stacy’s lip piercing, but comparing her lip piercing to my hijab is absurd.”
Amina Shakuri, junior, denies Carol’s defense to be true – the fact that Shakuri’s religion, Islam,
was compared to Carol’s Church of Body Modification. Islam has been well-known every since there has
been measurement s of the cultural distributions. Shakuri feels violated with how Carol has dared to
judge against her hijab. Meanwhile, the superintendent, Parker Gordon, states the vision for the
Leaguetown ISD which is put in front of every sides of the story.
“When we created this dress code in 2009, the district sought input from students, faculty and
community members,” Mr. Gordon said. “Together, we designed a plan that was appropriate for our
district. We also want our students to understand expectations in dress. We are modeling the business
world with our expectations.”