California school bans 13-year-old girl from playing 'Joy to the World' on the piano because it is 'too religious'
A California charter school that rejected a 13-year-old girl's choice of 'Joy to the World' for a piano assignment saying it was too "religious" reversed its decision on Tuesday, November 26.
An education specialist from South Sutter Charter School told eighth-grade homeschooler Brooklyn Benzel the previous week that her choice "would not be acceptable" after she submitted a video sample of her playing the beginner version of the popular Christmas carol, according to a Fox News report.
"My guess (regarding justification) is that there are words in the lyrics that can be considered religious such as 'savior,' and 'heaven'," the official wrote. "It is widely considered as a Christian hymn and is typically played/sung at Christmas time to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ."
Brooklyn's mother Julianne Benzel exchanged several emails with school officials before revealing to Fox News that her daughter was not going to sing any words and was only playing the notes on her piano.
According to the report, a school official suggested Brooklyn play 'Jingle Bells' instead as it was a "more cultural" choice "that won't be construed as religious" and rejected by their auditors.
"Would Brooklyn's rendition of 'Joy to the World' pass the auditor's inspection or be flagged as religious?" she wrote. "I am compelled to err on the side of caution, so my answer...is no."
According to Julianne, it was "extremely alarming" that school officials went to the extent of researching the song to pick out words that might be deemed offensive.
"You would think homeschooling would be the safest arena for conservatives," Julianne said. "We are tired and extremely weary of our Christian faith being attacked in this country."
It took a threat of legal action by Julianne for the school to reverse its decision. The Pacific Justice Institute, which helped the embattled mother, is now suing the company that manages the charter school for a similar allegation of religious discrimination against a piano teacher.
"Now that we can see that this was a nonsectarian assignment that Brooklyn chose to play 'Joy to the World' for, we are happy to accept it and add it to her portfolio," the school official wrote in response.
Nonetheless, Brooklyn is now preparing to play her favorite Christmas song at a retirement home in December.