Maine Neutralizes Theocratic SCOTUS Decision on Schools

When the six-member American Taliban majority on the U. S. Supreme Court decided that Maine's state assistance to private schools (due to many students not having public schools available in rural areas) must include aid to religious private schools as well, many defenders of the separation of church and state were alarmed.  

As alarming as the 6-3 decision was, Maine anticipated a path around the ruling by preemptively passing a law that denies state assistance to any private school that discriminates against LGBTQ students--which, in essence, eliminate the hateful Christian madrassas that would otherwise use taxpayer funds to instill the same hate into children. Genius. 

Details from the NY Times:

. . . . Anticipating this week’s decision, Maine lawmakers enacted a crucial amendment to the state’s anti-discrimination law last year in order to counteract the expected ruling. The revised law forbids discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation, and it applies to every private school that chooses to accept public funds, without regard to religious affiliation.

The impact was immediate: The two religious schools at issue in the Carson case, Bangor Christian Schools and Temple Academy, said that they would decline state funds if, as Maine’s new law requires, accepting such funds would require them to change how they operate or alter their “admissions standards” to admit L.G.B.T.Q. students.

The legislative fix crafted by Maine lawmakers offers a model for lawmakers elsewhere who are alarmed by the court’s aggressive swing to the right. Maine’s example shows that those on the losing end of a case can often outmaneuver the court and avoid the consequences of a ruling. . . .