FirstFreedomFirst.org [1] was co-founded by two Believers, Barry Lynn and Dr. Welton Gaddy. On behalf of First Freedom First, they have produced an hour-long video [2] to inform others of the importance of maintaining a political wall of separation between church and state. The Separation Clause appears in an abstract form in the U.S. Constitution, but there are deleterious real life consequences for violating the Separation Clause.
These issues are clearly illustrated by a diverse collection of guests, including musicians and comedians. Micheal Fox also makes an appearance, speaking out on the issue of stem cell research.
One of the guests is Matthew LaClair, an extraordinary high school student who publicized the fact that his “American History teacher” was actually preaching conservative Christianity in his New Jersey public high school classroom in 2006. Instead of being commended for speaking up, LaClair was ostracized by his high school’s administration and fellow students. That’s the price one should expect to pay, I suppose, for secretly tape-recording the “history teacher’s” lectures, then playing those tapes for the school board after the “history teacher” accused Matthew of lying. Matthew did what he had to do and his actions were courageous. What is truly amazing is that this same “history teacher” had been freely preaching religion in the public school classroomfor twelve years prior to Matthew speaking up.
The First Freedom First show includes about a dozen guests, each of them well spoken, paying tribute to this important issue of the separation of church and state.
After watching the show, it occurred to me that I had never seen any show like this before, anywhere. I’ve never before seen any video made for the general public that counters the “America is a Christian Nation” silliness that permeates the airwaves. It would seem that seriously reviewing the operation and importance of the Separation Clause should be mandatory for U.S. History students and the rest of us. After all, the Separation Clause is in our Constitution and it’s in there for a good reason.
The title to this post comes from actor James Whitmore’s challenge to this year’s crop of candidates: “Will you defend my right to worship . . . or not?
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