Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy (TIZA), a K-8 charter school in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota is a tax-supported Muslim public school, writes Minneapolis Star-Trib columnist Katherine Kersten, who’s been dubious about the school’s claim to secular status.
(TIZA) shares the headquarters building of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, whose mission is “establishing Islam in Minnesota.” The building also houses a mosque. TIZA’s executive director, Asad Zaman, is a Muslim imam, or religious leader, and its sponsor is an organization called Islamic Relief.
Most parents are African immigrants. Apparently, all are Muslim.
Kersten quotes Amanda Getz, who worked as a substitute teacher on a Friday, the day the charter school ends after lunch. In the afternoon, there’s a prayer service, which is supposed to be organized by parents as a voluntary after-school activity.
“The prayer I saw was not voluntary,” Getz said. “The kids were corralled by adults and required to go to the assembly where prayer occurred.”
Islamic Studies was also incorporated into the school day. “When I arrived, I was told ‘after school we have Islamic Studies,’ and I might have to stay for hall duty,” Getz said. “The teachers had written assignments on the blackboard for classes like math and social studies. Islamic Studies was the last one — the board said the kids were studying the Qu’ran. The students were told to copy it into their planner, along with everything else. That gave me the impression that Islamic Studies was a subject like any other.”
After school, Getz’s fifth-graders stayed in their classroom and the man in white who had led prayer in the gym came in to teach Islamic Studies. TIZA has in effect extended the school day — buses leave only after Islamic Studies is over. Getz did not see evidence of other extra-curricular activity, except for a group of small children playing outside.
This is not a madrassa: Students study the normal range of subjects during the normal school day. Test scores are excellent. Is TIZA over the church-state line?
Update: Here’s a local news report on the allegations. Not much new except that the school violates Minnesota law by not flying the U.S. flag. The principal says he doesn’t know how to work the flagpole. I’d bet someone from the American Legion would be happy to come by and demonstrate.
I guess it depends. If the parents have all signed forms saying that they want their kids to go to religious education, then I see no problem with it being treated as “required”. But if they make it hard for a non-Muslim kid to attend, then it wouldn’t be okay with me.
Would this be ‘okay’ if the school was sponsored by the local Catholic church and had bible study as a religious class and not as a literature/history class?
I’m pretty sure I know what the ACLU would claim about this if it was Catholic run …
-Mark Roulo
Substitute “Christian” for “Muslim” and “Bible” for “Qu’ran” and imagine it being considered acceptable as a public school.
“I guess it depends. If the parents have all signed forms saying that they want their kids to go to religious education, then I see no problem with it being treated as “required”.”
I don’t think that’s relevant. If it’s tax-supported, then wouldn’t that qualify as crossing the line of church/state separation? The public is paying for this school.
Of course it’s over the line. We’re just too “nice” to say so. Better to let it be than to be accused of being insensitive.
If you have studied the Qur’an and the ahadiths, you will discover that Islam is antithetical to our Bill of Rights and our Constitution.
Assuming that you believe in the concept of separation of church and state, then what is in effect a state supported religion school clearly crosses the line. I wonder why the ACLU, Barry Lynn’s organization (Americans United for Separation of Church and State) and the (militant) atheist community are not up in arms about this. Unfortunately it appears that they are only concerned with religion in the schools when the religion is Christianity. And just in case you were wondering, I am not a Christian, so it is not the particular religion but the hypocrisy of those organizations that bothers me.
The state is only supporting it if the salaries pay for the religious instruction or the texts, etc. When I was a kid, church groups were allowed to use local public school facilities on the same footing as any other non-profit group, and if this was and is still legal, having religious classes at a school doesn’t seem any different to me than having art classes. And my view wouldn’t be any change if it were a Baptist Bible group.
Having said all that, I very much doubt that the school is, in fact, keeping a barrier between the “school” curriculum and the “religious” one, and I doubt that atheist kids would be welcome at the school. So it probably is in violation.
Sounds to me like they’re pushing the limits of what’s legally allowed. I can’t imagine a school with a Christian orientation being allowed to do this. KTSP has a follow up to this story:
http://kstp.com/article/stories/S407036.shtml?cat=1
I find it interesting that the school has been violating state law in regards to the requirement that the US flag be flown during school hours with the excuse that the school’s executive director doesn’t know how to work the flagpole. Its not like a flagpole is a complicated piece of equipment. If you can’t figure out how to operate one then you probably don’t have any business running a school.
In my high school, the only students who were allowed to have a free block during the day were those who attended Seminary, a Mormon study class taught in a building conveniently across the street (though at the other high school, it was on a small section of land within the borders of the school property, it just happened to be cut out and belong to the Mormon church and not the high school).
I think that I’m okay with publicly-funded charter schools that have a religious curriculum separated from the other curriculum, as their curriculum seems to be (though I’m working under the assumption that it is indeed separate, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it actually wasn’t). They advertise that they are Muslim-focused, so I think that’s fair. The reports of mandatory attendance for things are certainly less good, but it seems as if it’s more a parent’s choice to have their child do these things, just like many parents force their children to go to Sunday school, church, synagogue, etc.
This is definitely over the line. Any other group would be in violation and the ACLU would be up in arms. If this is all truly voluntary, another group (Jewish or Christian) should “volunteer” to come in and lead an after-school activity. Let’s see how willing they would be to allow that!
We need to return to the assimilation techniques of the early 20th century. Perhaps not always pleasant, but effective. These children are unlikely to grow up to be Americans in any sense with which we would be familiar.
I wouldn’t have a problem with the school if other religions were allowed to run their own charter schools. But allowing a Muslim charter school while prohibiting Jewish and Christian ones seems a clear violation of the 1st Amendment’s establishment clause.
No, CW. More wrongs do not make any of them right.
It sure sounds like this school is over the line. How’d they ever get this far?
Nance
Mrs. Davis said, “We need to return to the assimilation techniques of the early 20th century.”
Correct. We need to be a melting pot instead of a salad bowl. If we don’t return to assimilation, we will cease to be a country over the long run.
You’ve written about this school (and its high reading scores) before:
http://joannejacobs.com/2007/08/13/shul-or-mosque-and-state/
This is not acceptable, this school should be sued, shut down and closed.
What happened to Minnesota? We will NEVER move back there again, too many “Slips of the system”
Hopefully this will stay in the main stream media and make Minnesota clean up the state.
What a shame, and why didn’t this come out earlier? I am sure because the locals would not be listened too. Shame Shame!!!
I did want to add the so called Minnesota Nice just isn’t working, you’re all letting the state go to hell! Stick up for yourselves! Quit being so scared!
This is obviously George Bush’s fault. If we could only have change, one would not have to know how, or be required to raise a flag on a pole, or have to wear a lapel pin. How come nobody every mentions Christians who are flag pole challenged?
I am dismayed by the intolerance of the posters in this thread. Islam is a minority relgion in this country, so I have no problem with its establishment being taxpayer funded.
BadaBing…
You’re being sarcastic, right?
Yup.
– These children are unlikely to grow up to be Americans in any sense with which we would be familiar.
It’s already the case.
There’s more to this story; the backing organization of the school is a front for the Muslim Brotherhood, a known terorist organization. So at first, you might think “Well, this is just the same as any other religious ed”, but you’d be wrong. The Muslim Brotherhood has stated its goals are to overthrow our jurisprudence at replace it with sharia law. powerlineblog.com has more information on MAS, and their interesting political rabblerousing around MN.
We who have lived in the United States for a long time are not allowed to let our children pray or read their bibles in school, nor do we get a special prayer room of any other accomidtions. Why should the muslim religion get special previlages and we have to pay for it? What is wrong with this picture? Public schools should be for everyone. No one group deserves more consideration then any other. This kind of special treatment of a group raises our taxes. I say enough is enough.
It is quiet interesting to note people like Alex and TammyP US ARMY WIFE who talk with less thoughts and more anger because as I see people of such nature definately need to be deciplined, which in my opinion is exectly what this (TIZA) school is offering. For example the shooting in schools that have occured in many parts of US is in pulic schools where the parents nor the school teachers taught dicipline to those students who actually did the schooting. In my opinion TIZA is doing an excellent job and taxpayers money is well spent.
I THINK THAT THE CHRISTIANS SHOULD RISE UP AND FORCE THE GOVERMENT TO STOP THIS RIGHT NOW. I AM NOT FOR THE SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE BECAUSE IT IS A LIE FROM THE PITS OF HELL. OUR FOR FATHERS NEVER MEANT TO STOP RELIGION IN SCHOOLS IT MEANT THAT THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD NOT ESTABLISH ONE RELIGION OVER ANOTHER. BUT THIS IS A SURE VIOALTION AND SHOULD BE SHUT DOWN. CHRISTIANS SHOULD NOT ALLOW THEIR TAXES TO PAY FOR THIS SCHOOL, WHICH IS AGAINST THE LAW.