Press Release

Humanists Reject Manipulation of Children by Religious Group

For Immediate Release - Contact: Roy Speckhardt (202) 238-9088

(Washington, DC, August 27, 2003) “A religious group is unethically circumventing the separation of religion and government by recruiting children to advance its sectarian faith in public schools,” said American Humanist Association Executive Director Tony Hileman.

The evangelical group American Family Radio and Revival Fires Ministries recently started an annual back-to-school “Truth for Youth Revival Week.” By law, adults cannot distribute sectarian literature on public school grounds. So this group recruits children to hand out New Testaments featuring comic strips, which they call “the Youth for Truth Bible,” to “the unsaved” in public schools.

Responded Hileman, “The mere presence of Bible-toting children out to convert “the unsaved” forces fellow students to accept or reject aggressive Christian proselytizing. Given the resources of students backed by a ministry, this raises the question of whether such students have an unfair advantage over other groups in spreading their message on public school campuses.

“The AHA doesn’t advocate censorship but rather fair play, and it is difficult to see how promoting this one-sided view has any academic value. Their purpose is clearly to convert as many youths as possible to their particular sectarian beliefs. That’s hardly educational.

“Even worse, they don’t shy away from using children to accomplish what they legally cannot do themselves,” concluded Hileman.

The American Humanist Association is the oldest and largest Humanist organization in the nation. The AHA is dedicated to ensuring a voice for those with a positive outlook, based on reason and experience, which embraces all of humanity.

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