Well, it's good to know that Jennifer Epps-Addison took the time to get
her facts straight before writing her article. St. Marcus' school run
by the WELS. No, the school is not run by the WELS. It's run by St.
Marcus. However, a case could be made that St. Marcus runs the
WELS...........
Adolph Hoenecke
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| "WELS doesn't discriminate - we abuse everyone." http://ichabodthegloryhasdeparted.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-ski-situation-posted-by-local-wels.html |
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| "A visit to our women's spiritual retreat will make you forget everything, doll." |
Ironically, this practice of using vouchers is clearly contrary to the official WELS doctrine contained in "This We Believe," which states in its article VIII:
"8. We reject any attempt on the part of the church to seek the financial assistance of the state in carrying out its saving purpose."
Jennifer Epps-Addison's blog is part of our Purple Wisconsin Project. Epps-Addison is a wife, mother, attorney and community organizer.
The Milwaukee Common Council Should Not Endorse Discrimination
As a graduate of public schools and the proud parent of children in MPS, I value diversity. As a citizen, I value the promise of equal opportunity for all. Therefore, I’m disturbed that Milwaukee’s Common Council seems willing to allow public dollars to be used for discrimination, in particular discrimination against gay people and women.
Here’s the situation – St. Marcus School here in Milwaukee is operated by the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS). The school has 730 students whose tuition (like all voucher schools) is largely funded by taxpayer dollars. St. Marcus leaders have asked the city to let them acquire Lee School, an unused Milwaukee Public School building (the City Council makes this decision, not the school board, because the city owns all MPS buildings). The question will be put before the full Common Council next Tuesday.
What’s the problem? There are several:
• WELS, the religious group that runs St. Marcus School, discriminates against women. According to church doctrine, women were born to be submissive to men – within the church, in marriage, and in the outside world. Thus women are not allowed to participate in church-based governing bodies or vote on major decisions. This includes the School Council and Board of Directors. The basic principle is that “women must not exercise authority over men.”
Our daughters already have enough of a battle in our society. Their education should arm them to fight against inequality, not perpetuate it.
• WELS believes homosexuality should be illegal.
In recent weeks, we have proudly celebrated the federal court ruling that struck down our state’s ban on marriage equality. Our tax dollars should not be investing in a school that refuses to acknowledge our society’s fundamental rights.
• If the sale goes through, an estimated $5 million more per year in taxpayer
dollars will be used to allow St. Marcus to teach students discrimination.
Regardless of what a church’s beliefs are, our tax money shouldn’t be funding the advancement of church doctrine. Giving public funds to an organization that shows prejudice against women and gay people is a form of endorsement that sends a very clear message to the public: “We don’t think embracing discrimination is a big deal so we will work with them anyway.”
Just think of it this way. St. Marcus instructs hundreds of girls (and almost undoubtedly, gay students attend St. Marcus as well). What if a school that served a mostly African-American student population had a rule that blacks were not allowed to participate in governance or in the school council?
Our politicians need to show they will support equal rights for all — not just in marriage, but by putting an end to any endorsement of discriminatory Jim Crow separate and unequal policies . Our public schools are legally prohibited from discriminating against students in a range of areas, from disability status, race, and sexual orientation, to gender, pregnancy and marital status. If we truly value freedom and equal opportunity for all, we would not tolerate giving our collective resources to groups who do not stand for the same.
Conservatives are continuously willing to give up on our public schools instead of making the investments needed to make the system as productive as it can be to secure our nation’s prosperous future. To ensure that future, we need to treat public education as a priority, not as a checkbook for churches and private business.
It’s time to create the schools and communities that all Milwaukee’s children deserve. Rather than subsidizing discrimination, we should be ensuring that every student has a desk and a text book, that every school has a nurse and a librarian, and that every Milwaukee Public School is a community school. I urge you to contact your Alderman and tell them to stand against discrimination and vote no on June 17.
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ABOUT JENNIFER EPPS-ADDISON
Jennifer Epps-Addison is a wife, mother, attorney and community organizer. As the Executive Director of Wisconsin Jobs Now, Epps-Addison spends every day fighting to restore the Wisconsin Idea. (The notion that government and its institutions should serve to improve the welfare of the greatest number of its citizens, not just the rich and powerful).The Wisconsin Idea Blog is a forum for political problem solving aimed at bringing to light bold ideas about how to move Wisconsin forward and expand opportunity, freedom and security to the next generation of Wisconsinites.
