Reacting to public pushback, Orange County Public Schools has instructed West Orange High to cease its weekly “Witchy Wednesday” video that aired during morning announcements.
AFN previously reported the first weekly segment, which aired Sept. 10, encouraged students to use spells, based on the phases of the moon, to find “enlightenment” and “healing.”
The school district was challenged by Liberty Counsel, the Florida-based religious liberty law firm. In its letter, dated Sept. 18, Liberty Counsel’s attorneys demanded the high school give an opt-out option to students who didn’t want to be exposed to witchcraft. The letter also requested the high school allow Christian students share their faith.
In a letter sent to Liberty Counsel, dated Sept. 23, Orange County Public Schools said it reviewed the “Witch Wednesday” segments and instructed the high school to cease showing the video. “No further segments of this nature will take place,” the letter states.
Liberty Counsel attorney Richard Mast tells AFN the school district was informed the video “opened the door” for other students to share their beliefs, too.
“We cautioned them,” he recalls, “that they would not be permitted to discriminate against Christian religious speech now that they opened this up this up."
The letter to Liberty Counsel, five pages in length, appears to agree with that warning. The letter, likely written by the school district’s legal counsel, cites two U.S. Supreme Court rulings related to public schools and religious instruction.
"...we do not want any student, whether Christian or non-Christian, to feel like they are outsiders and not full members of the political community at West Orange High School," the letter states.
Orange County, home to Orlando and Walt Disney World, is home to 2.6 million residents. The public school district there serves over 200,000 students in more than 200 schools.
