Book Discussion "Ellery's Protest" (City of Fairfax, VA)

Note: Because there are only 2 people signed up and others have a schedule conflict, I have moved this event to Saturday, October 3rd. Room and Time remain the same!

We will be discussing "Ellery's Protest" by
Stephen D. Solomon. You can preview the book on online. There is also an excerpt available on Forbes.com. The book is available for $21.46 on Amazon.

I don't want people not participating for financial reasons. If you can't find a copy ask around - Ellery visited the area in March and April of this year so many of us in the local atheist community have one you can borrow. You can attend the discussion if you have not read the entire book. However, if you do plan to do this, please familiarize yourself with the topic and author online.

Great legal decisions often result from the heroic actions of average citizens. Ellery's Protest is the story of how one student's objection to mandatory school prayer and Bible reading led to one of the most controversial court cases of the twentieth century—and a decision that still reverberates in the battle over the role of religion in public life.

Abington School District v. Schempp began its journey through the nation's courts in 1956, when sixteen-year-old Ellery Schempp protested his public school's compulsory prayer and Bible-reading period by reading silently from the Koran. Ejected from class for his actions, Schempp sued the school district. The Supreme Court's decision in his favor was one of the most important rulings on religious freedom in our nation's history. It prompted a conservative backlash that continues to this day, in the skirmishes over school prayer, the teaching of creationism and intelligent design, and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance with the phrase "under God."

We will be in Conference Room 103. The formal discussion will last from 1 PM to 2:30 PM although we have the room from 12:30 to 3 PM if you would like to join others in informal chat. There's a white board and I will bring a few markers. Also, you're welcome to bring a snack or beverage if you would like. (There is ample free parking at the library and plenty of places to eat across the street.)