Court upholds Virginia's `moment of silence'

Christian Century, Nov 15, 2000

A federal court has affirmed the constitutionality of a Virginia law requiring public school students to observe a minute of silence in class each day.

In a 15-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton rejected the American Civil Liberties Union's contention that the law violated the constitutional separation of church and state because it allowed for prayer during the moment of silence. Virginia insisted that the four-month-old law has a secular purpose and does not favor religion. The court agreed, saying "the momentary silence neither advances nor inhibits religion." Judge Hilton went on to say: "Students may think as they wish--and this thinking can be purely religious in nature or purely secular in nature. All that is required is that they sit silently."

The ACLU plans to appeal the ruling. "It's a disappointing opinion because we felt there was a strong legislative history showing that this [law], from the beginning to the end, was about promoting prayer in school," Kent Willis, executive director of the organization's Virginia chapter, told the Washington Times.