N.H. school unconstitutionally rejects vacation Bible school fliers, permits others
ADF attorneys file suit against school district for violating Christian group’s free speech rightsCONCORD, N.H. — After the Hudson School District refused to allow vacation Bible school fliers to be made available to students as part of the district’s public literature distribution program, Alliance Defense Fund attorneys filed a lawsuit Monday against the district on behalf of the Christian woman who submitted the fliers. The district’s superintendent rejected the fliers on the grounds they were religious.
“Schools can’t ban the distribution of a Christian group’s literature just because it is religious,” said ADF Senior Counsel David Cortman, who is representing Patricia Regan, the assistant director for the church’s VBS program conducted last month. “Hudson School District’s decision to single out vacation Bible school fliers for censorship while permitting the distribution of literature from a wide variety of other community groups clearly reflects a discriminatory policy under well-established court precedent.”
On June 12, Regan submitted the VBS fliers in accordance with the district’s literature distribution policy. The district superintendent rejected the fliers the following day solely because of their religious content and viewpoint.
“The VBS program offers educational, cultural, charitable, community, and recreational activities just like other groups whose fliers promoting such activities were accepted,” said ADF Litigation Counsel Joshua Bolinger. “Government-run schools cannot treat groups with non-religious viewpoints more favorably than groups with religious viewpoints.”
A copy of the complaint filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire in Regan v. Hudson School District is available at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/ReganComplaint.pdf.
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
