ACLJ view the mindfulness-based stress reduction techniques used in some schools as a danger to children. The organization condemned audio recordings it claims say, “ We’re all connected through nature. And we’re all connected through the universe.”
(Katherine Hignett – Newsweek) Conservative Christian watchdog group The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) has launched a petition to stop “forced Buddhist meditation” in schools.
The group claims children in public schools across the U.S. are being “indoctrinated” by “Buddhist-based mindfulness methods in an “outright unconstitutional” practice. But companies behind the programs say their techniques can help improve self-awareness and self-control.
“We’re launching a multifaceted legal campaign including representing parents of these students, sending demand letters, state FOIA requests, and if necessary, litigation,” the petition reads.
Launched Wednesday, it has garnered almost 50,000 signatures on the evangelical group’s website as of 7.30 a.m. ET Saturday.
The group accuses schools in at least 12 states of “forcing” students to listen to mindfulness audio tapes, including those produced by Inner Explorer, Mind Up, and Dialectic Behavior Therapy.
Inner Exploration says its secular curriculum is designed to provide students with skills like self-awareness, resilience and self-control, for example.
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