HUMANIST SOCIETY OF VICTORIA Inc.

(Reg. No. A0020272M)

Affiliated with the Council of Australian Humanist Societies (CAHS)
and the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU), London, UK

GPO Box 1555, Melbourne, VIC 3001

http://vic.humanist.org.au

MEDIA RELEASE
27 March 2011

Religious discrimination in State primary schools

There are children in our primary schools today who suffer from
religious discrimination. When religious instruction (or ‘RI’) comes up and
parents exert their right of conscientious objection, there can be unintended
consequences. Separation from their classmates during the RI period is
handled like punishment in some schools, and sometimes it is compounded
with victimization by other students. And the whole school is affected if a
minority is singled out and excluded.

The Humanist Society of Victoria has collected many complaints from

the public about the way RI (which is more commonly known as CRE) is being
conducted. It has prepared a formal complaint on behalf of the aggrieved
parents to the Victorian Equal Opportunity & Human Rights Commission.

The Society has written to State primary school councils, to inform

them of the risk of adverse discrimination and to suggest ways of preventing
it. Councils were reminded of the wide-spread misconception that schools
were required by law to provide RI where it was available. On the contrary,
councils are responsible for deciding whether RI is appropriate for their
school. We recommend two alternatives: (1) the Humanist course of practical
ethics, http://www.victorianhumanist.com/childrens-ethics-course, which is
comparable to St James Ethics Centre’s course in NSW; and (2) philosophical
ethics taught by professional teachers, trained by Victorian Association for
Philosophy in Schools.

RI is a problem also because it is delivered by volunteer instructors

from outside the school, not by trained teachers. The system is poorly
regulated and not clearly answerable to either schools or parents. Humanists
contend that it is an imposition on impressionable children and lags way
behind community attitudes and the needs of families in today’s multicultural
society.

Concerned parents are encouraged to ask their school (1) to make RI

participation a matter of opting-in, not opting-out, and (2) to schedule the RI
class after normal school hours. Parents who wish to follow or join the
forthcoming legal case can visit the website, http://vic.humanist.org.au, and
write to the E-mail address, Religionsinschool@gmail.com.

Stephen Stuart, president [HSV mr0311]

The Humanist life-stance emphasizes reasoned enquiry and dialogue, individual freedom with responsibility, the need for
tolerance and co-operation, and the recognition that we are a dependent part of nature.