Katherine Kersten does some good reporting for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Apparently a charter school there gets religious funding despite the fact that charter schools are PUBLIC, and therefore not supposed to push religion.
This school, TIZA, has been trying to hide that it is a Muslim school, despite much evidence to the contrary:
TIZA has many characteristics that suggest a religious school. It shares the headquarters building of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, whose mission is "establishing Islam in Minnesota." The building also houses a mosque. TIZA's executive director, Asad Zaman, is a Muslim imam, or religious leader, and its sponsor is an organization called Islamic Relief.
Students pray daily, the cafeteria serves halal food - permissible under Islamic law -- and "Islamic Studies" is offered at the end of the school day.
Zaman maintains that TIZA is not a religious school. He declined, however, to allow me to visit the school to see for myself, "due to the hectic schedule for statewide testing." But after I e-mailed him that the Minnesota Department of Education had told me that testing would not begin for several weeks, Zaman did not respond -- even to urgent calls and e-mails seeking comment before my first column on TIZA.
It is the right of any religion to establish schools. It is not their right to take my tax money to do it. The school's leader also lied to the reporter about how often the Minnesota Board of Education visits the school.
The school defends itself by saying prayers are student led, but the reporter offers evidence that prayers are scheduled and promoted by administrators.
Sheesh. Time to crack down on this nonsense and make them pay their own way.
UPDATE 1: As pointed out below, Kersten's motivation is clear: she is upset because Christian schools aren't afforded this latitude while an Islamic school is (what a whiny, bigoted malevolency). She is NOT upset because she supports the separation of church and state. However, the facts are the facts in the case. Religion, ANY KIND, is not to be using tax money.