U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to back former Bremerton High coach Joseph Kennedy raises concerns about pressuring students and power imbalances
Religion and football are often positioned together in American culture, from a scoring player pointing to the sky to a postgame prayer circle at midfield. A Supreme Court ruling last week doubled down on allowing that connection to persist in secular public high schools through the authority figure of a coach.
Steve Sell, longtime athletic director and football coach at Aragon High School in San Mateo, was troubled that athletes competing for playing time might feel pressured to pray alongside a coach to help stay in that person’s good graces. The CIF is still reviewing the decision to “determine the impact on our events if any,” a spokesperson wrote in a Wednesday email. Central Coast Section commissioner Dave Grissom said there’s been zero conversation about it within his office and he does not see it as an issue for the section.
“I think a kid should have a choice to pray and not pray, and I think a coach should have a choice to pray and not pray,” he said, noting that some of his players have missed practices or games in support of religions other than Christianity, too.
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