By the way, I took a quick look at the ongoing media treatment, and as one could predict, Fox News reported the incident quite differently from many of the others.
I well remember when there were just three TV news networks (broadcast only, in most areas of the USA) and just a few news services (e.g., Associated Press, Reuters) and there wasn’t all that much difference in how those various entities reported a news event. (Local newspapers were another story. In many cities the same publisher produced both a Republican-leaning newspaper and a Democratic newspaper—but they tended to start with the same basic facts issued by the major wire services. But the spin tended to be far more restrained than today.)
Today, I’ve lost count of the different kinds of news media and it is far more difficult to separate the facts from the chaff.
It was a parochial school and there are ways to be able to sue. Parochial schools, at least in this area, take government funding in the form of transportation aide, and other aide from local, state and federal sources. We (FFRF) attorneys go throw that avenue to get standing. We actually sue government to take action. It is suble, backdoor, like the Church of the Spaghetti Monster stuff. Ever see the Satanic Coloring Books? Or the Satanic Statues to counteract the 10 Commandment monuments? Or the “atheist in a foxhole” veteran memorials.
Yes, diplomacy is used first. So is the press. Usually it works. But the threat of a lawsuit is very powerful. We (FFRF) has ten constitutional lawyers on staff. Our win rate is over 95%. But it is very expensive to do. Lawsuits are minimum of several $100K to do (on both sides).
Can you imaging a day where it wouldn’t require legal action ever? Dialogue would be enough, because requests were reasonable, and they were received considerately?
No, I really don’t see a day when all entanglement is gone. As long as there are groups of people who are in more powerful positions than another groups of people, there will be majority/minority discourse. Even if this country becomes majority “nones” which I belief will be the case in about a decade, the discourse will shift between the none majority and religious minorities. Perhaps someday I will be fighting for the right to wear a burka to the prom. Or a Christian doctor to help a Jehovah witness child with a new live saving blood antigen replacement therapy.
The offer of blindfolds for the boys was one of the best and most hilarious tactics we came up with. It got to the heart of the issue which was why are you shaming these young girls who are so body conscious at that age. It was the Catholic school moms who got the policy thrown out. The mom’s, who were spending hundreds of dollars on designer prom dresses revolved and it took the Catholic Bishop to intervene and get rid of the ponchos and let the girls decide what was an appropriate prom dress considering their Catholic upbringing.