It was a small sentence -- "I will pray for you" -- but it meant big trouble for Cony High School technician Toni Richardson. When Richardson offered that comfort to another Christian on staff in private, she was hauled before school officials and warned not to utter a word about her faith again.
District officials kicked off the controversy last year by telling Toni that she could "face discipline or dismissal in the future" if she expressed her faith so openly again. "I was shocked that my employer punished me for privately telling a co-worker I would pray for them," she told reporters at the time.
First Liberty Institute's Jeremy Dys, who filed a complaint on Toni's behalf, explained that it had been a hard 12 months for Richardson since then. "This entire year Toni has had to self-censor herself, making sure she's not using religious language. ...She's even had to refrain from wearing jewelry that has a cross on it, because if someone were to overhear this private conversation or see that religious imagery round her neck, then she could face discipline or even be terminated."
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2 comments:
As an atheist, and a staunch supporter of the establishment clause, I think that Ms Richardson was treated rather poorly by the particular school administrators.
She did not say anything of a controversial nature, and she did so to other staff in private, totally with in her right to do so.
These administrators paint me in a poor light because people will associate me with them, and what they did was horrible. I don't know if there is some sort of legal action Ms Richardson can take for this, but if there it, she should consider it.
November 16, 2017 at 11:58 AM:
Read the article, the whole article. She has been vindicated and the school has changed its policy.
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