A Florida woman, Felicia Townes of Jacksonville, came to Tallahassee, the state capital, last month to lobby for the return of official prayer in public schools by registering a petition drive to return school-sponsored religious exercises.
Townes said she believes official prayer will solve a variety of problems that young people face, reported WXTL-TV.
“We see a rise in bullying and suicidal thoughts without prayer, and so we believe that prayer goes back into the school,” Townes said. “We believe that it will eradicate all bullying, all depression.”
Even if Townes collects enough signatures to put the matter on the next state ballot, official school prayer would still face an uphill climb. The U.S. Supreme Court struck down school-sponsored prayer in 1962, asserting that it violates the rights of students and their families.
