I’ve written before about how the Silent Reflection and Student Prayer time is back in Illinois.
After several wasted “moments” in the classroom, some legislators are finally trying to put a stop to this nonsense.
House Bill 0273 (HB0273) was introduced by Republican (!!!) Jim Durkin and has since picked up co-sponsors Karen May and Ann Williams (both Democrats).
The bill:
Amends the Silent Reflection and Student Prayer Act. Changes the title and short title of the Act. Repeals the Section of the Act requiring the observance of a brief period of silence in the classroom. Effective immediately.
Rob Sherman — the atheist who, along with his daughter, got the original Moment of Silence and Prayer bill to be ruled unconstitutional — explains the repeal bill’s current status:
HB 293 is pending before the House Judiciary Civil Law Committee (“Judiciary I”). What that means is that HB 293 must be approved by a majority of the Members of Judiciary I in order for the Bill to be sent to the full House of Representatives for consideration…
Judiciary I, he says, will be holding a hearing this Wednesday. This bill may be discussed further at that time.
I will check with Representative Durkin on Tuesday (February 22nd) to see if he is going to call the Bill this week for consideration by Judiciary I. If the Bill is called this Wednesday, I will be there to testify as a proponent of the Bill. If the Bill is not called this week, I will be there when Rep. Durkin does call the Bill.
Godspeed, Rob. May this bill get passed quickly. It’s already being ignored in most classrooms and ridiculed nonstop by the students and faculty. Sure, it’s being officially “observed,” but that doesn’t mean anyone’s getting anything out of it or taking it seriously.
We have better things to do in our classroom than sit around doing nothing (even if for only a moment).
Apparently, the state legislature doesn’t. At least repealing this bill will allow them to move on to more pressing issues in our public schools.