Posted on Oct 15th, 2009

ACLU of Texas and United Sikhs Release Joint Letter to Texas ISDs

Protecting Students’ Rights Regarding Religious Attire



Contact: Dotty Griffith, Public Education Director, ACLU Foundation of Texas, (512) 478-7300 x 106 or 923-1909; dgriffith@aclutx.org Or sap@unitedsikhs.org

		Selected School Districts The school districts were not selected as a result of complaints or investigation. The districts received lettersas part of our affirmative outreach to districts with significant numbers of Sikh students. Allen Independent School District Arlington Independent School District Austin Independent School District Coppell Independent School District Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District Dallas Independent School District Fort Worth Independent School District Frisco Independent School District Garland Independent School District Harmony School of Science Houston Independent School District Irving Independent School District Katy Independent School District Keller Independent School District Leander Independent School District Lewisville Independent School District Mansfield Independent School District Mckinney Independent School District North Hills Preparatory (charter) Pasadena Independent School District Pflugerville Independent School District Plano Independent School District Richardson Independent School District Round Rock School District Tomball Independent School District Westlake Academy Wylie Independent School District

AUSTIN – The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas and UNITED SIKHS, an organization devoted to promoting the civil and human rights of the Sikh community, today released copies of a joint letter addressed to Texas public school districts, reminding districts of the protections for religious dress required by state law and the U.S. Constitution.

Download copies of the letters

The letter is being sent directly to school districts with significant numbers of Sikh students, and is also being issued publicly for use by parents and communities across the state to advocate for students’ rights to wear religious attire at school.

“Both Texas’ Religious Freedom Restoration Act and the U.S. Constitution protect students’ rights to wear religious attire in school, including Sikh students’ rights to wear turbans,” wrote ACLU of Texas Legal Director Lisa Graybill. “The same laws protect Catholic students wearing rosaries, Jewish students wearing yarmulkes, and Native American students wearing long hair in accordance with their religious beliefs,” she added.

Gurvinder Singh, Director of UNITED SIKHS, commented, “Sikh students regularly experience bullying, verbal and physical abuse at school because of their appearance, yet many do not know they can challenge this mistreatment. We hope this letter will empower students and their parents to stand up for their rights.” Singh also urged school administrators to review the Sikh Awareness Project (SAP), a school appropriate program designed to prevent harassment, available online at www.unitedsikhs.org/sap. UNITED SIKHS has been giving presentations at schools around the nation, and is available for a presentation at Texas school.

“Unfortunately, ignorance can lead to intolerance and discrimination,” noted Fleming Terrell, Staff Attorney for the ACLU of Texas. “The ACLU of Texas partnered with UNITED SIKHS to address this problem by making this letter available as a tool that Sikh families can use to educate their school districts about their religious practices and students’ rights.”