Freedom of Religion

by Tamar Shachaf
About You Editor

When the pilgrims came to America they came to seek religious freedom. They came to America to find a place where they could practice and speak of their religion without fear. Many years have passed since the pilgrims have come to flee persecution and while religious freedom is now a constitutional right, it is still not practiced my many. Recently, a Los Angeles City College student found himself having to stand up for his religion not only in front of a class, but also in front of his professor.
Jonathan Lopez prepared a speech for a class taught by John Matteson. According to Lopez, half way through his speech about G-d and miracles he was interrupted by Matteson and ridiculed him for his beliefs. Matteson went on to write on Lopez evaluation sheet that he should ask G-d for his grade. Lopez accuses Matteson of calling him a "facist bastard" and is suing him for viewpoint discrimination.
While often the classroom is not the place for religious talks, it is also not the place for ridicule because of religion. Lopez had every right to bring up his religion and the professor should have listened even if he did not agree. Professors should respect their students, and humans should respect each other. If Matteson did say and do everything Lopez accuses him of then he is a shame to his school and to colleges in general. America is a place where everyone is guaranteed religious freedom and freedom of speech. By ridiculing Lopez, Matteson was ridiculing both of those freedoms.

http://splc.org/newsflash.asp?id=1876