City Penalized for Barring ‘Jesus Dancers’
Dropped girls from festival because of ‘Christian’ T-shirts, song
Six girls barred from performing in a city’s holiday show because they wore "Jesus Christ Dancers" shirts settled a federal lawsuit in which they were awarded $3,000 each.
The American Family Association Center for Law & Policy, representing the girls and their instructor, reached an agreement with the city of Chula Vista, which refused to let them perform "because of the Christian message on their T-shirts and the Christian theme music they planned to dance to."
As WND reported, the girls, ages 8 to 12, were scheduled to perform a hip-hop dance routine Dec. 3, 2005, at a "Holiday Festival."
A consent decree signed Oct. 24 ordered the city to pay $3,000 to each of the girls and to their dance instructor. Another $10,000 is to be paid for attorney fees and costs. Also included in the settlement is a requirement by the court for the city "to provide First Amendment training on an annual basis to its police officers and all city employees who are classified as mid-managers and above."
Attorney Brian Fahling said Chula Vista "is to be commended for stepping forward and acknowledging it violated the girl’s constitutional rights."
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