Do you ever wonder if just one person can really make a difference? Let’s talk about one young lady who made a huge difference. Her name is Asia Canada. Asia is a cheerleader for Oneida High School in Oneida, Tennessee.
Since about 1930, Oneida High School has been saying a prayer before the start of their football games. Recently the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) and other atheist groups encouraged the school district to drop their prayer before the games. Again, like many school districts across the country, this school district immediately dropped the prayer at just the threat of legal action. The high school replaced the prayer with a moment of silence before the football games. Frankly, I have never understood what a moment of silence means but that’s a topic for another time.
Well…enter the heroine of the story, Asia Canada. As the moment of silence is announced and quiet falls over the stadium, one voice rings out. That voice is coming from Asia Canada. Asia starts loudly reciting the Lord’s Prayer…and it catches on. Soon the other cheerleaders have joined in, then the fans in the stadium. Even the opposing team members began reciting the Lord’s Prayer. Can you imagine? What started as atheists demanding the elimination of prayer turns into a stadium of folks praying out loud.
Now before each home game Asia and the other cheerleaders say the Lord’s Prayer. The FFRF really have nothing they can say about this since this prayer is not led by faculty or staff…it is student led.
The announcer for each of the Oneida High School football home games said this:
Where you had one person saying a prayer over the PA, now you’ve got hundreds, maybe a thousand people saying it together.
So, maybe the Oneida School District and some of the other school districts that have caved in to the Freedom From Religion Foundation can become students again. Asia Canada just gave you a lesson if you’re willing to listen. Don’t be so quick to give in to those trying to take away our religious freedom. The solution isn’t surrender. The solution is found in some creative thinking and having the courage to step out and take some action.
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