by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis last week signed into law a bill that allows public schools the option of permitting volunteer religious chaplains to counsel students on campus, CBN News reports. The law has been strongly criticized by the ACLU of Florida, the Interfaith Alliance, the National Education Association, and The Satanic Temple.
Passed by the Republican-led Florida legislature by a wide margin, HB 931 will come into effect on July 1, CBN said. The law allows volunteer chaplains to “provide support, services, and programs to students as assigned by the district school board or charter school governing board.”
Addressing concerns that the law is intended as a means of religious indoctrination, DeSantis said in a statement that school districts are not required to bring in chaplains and neither are students required to see them.
“It’s our view that if school districts want to bring in chaplains to offer voluntary services, they’re within their right to do so,” DeSantis said. “It’s totally voluntary for a parent or a student to participate. No one’s being forced to do anything. But to exclude religious groups from campus, that is discrimination.”
Announcing their intention to push back against the law, The Satanic Temple reportedly announced it would be offering the services of “chaplains” from their organization. Responding to concerns that this might be allowed, DeSantis said: “We’re not playing those games in Florida. That is not a religion. That is not qualified to be able to participate in this.”
In a separate statement criticizing the law, the ACLU of Florida said: “Public schools are not Sunday schools and chaplains are not school counselors. Allowing chaplains to assume official positions — whether paid or voluntary — in public schools as counselors or other support staff will undermine this right by creating an environment ripe for evangelizing and religious coercion of students in violation of the First Amendment to the US Constitution.”
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