Nevada valedictorian ignites free speech debate

  LAS VEGAS (AP) – As Brittany Mc Comb gave the valedictorian’s address at Foothill High School, offi*cials cut off the microphone in mid-sentence as she said “God’s love is so great that he gave His only son up ...” Mc Comb continued with*out amplification: “... to an excruciating death on a cross so his blood would cov*er all our shortcomings and provide for us a way to heav*en in accepting this grace.” School officials directed Mc Comb to remove mention of her relationship with Je*sus Christ as the source of her success, the Las Vegas Sun reported. The text ap*proved by the school merely said God filled a hole in her heart that her accomplish*ments couldn’t.
  School lawyer Bill Hoffman advised deletion of the refer*ences to Jesus. Mc Comb agreed, but later changed her mind after prayer.
  The school cited the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Ap*peals, which ruled in 2000 and 2003 that schools must censor student speeches for proselytizing because the First Amendment bars gov*ernment from favoring any faith or coercing religious practice.
 
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