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When two young siblings were told they couldn’t sing about Jesus at their school talent show, a legal battle for religious freedom turned their silencing into a powerful song of victory.
A Michigan elementary school has reversed its previous decision and will now allow two students to perform Christian worship songs during an upcoming talent show, following legal pressure from a prominent religious liberty organization.
West Ward Elementary School in Allegan had initially barred the students, who are siblings, from performing Brandon Lake’s “That’s Who I Praise” and Colton Dixon’s “Up and Up,” citing the songs’ overtly Christian messages. School officials claimed the content could violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, which they interpreted as requiring a strict separation between religion and public education.
In a press release, Kayla Toney, an attorney for First Liberty Institute, stated, “It’s cruel that a school would threaten to censor elementary students from singing popular songs just because they are religious.”
She added, “As the Supreme Court has repeatedly recognized, students do not lose their First Amendment rights when they walk through the schoolhouse gates. School officials need to comply with the law and stop censoring students’ religious expression.”
On April 25, First Liberty, a Texas-based legal group that advocates for religious freedom, sent a letter to Allegan Public Schools on behalf of the children’s parents, arguing that banning the Christian songs infringed on the students’ constitutional rights to free speech and religious expression.
“The government may not discriminate against private religious expression,” the firm wrote. “Students do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.”
The letter concluded that forcing any student of faith
“to change their song choice or lyrics would be unconstitutional censorship and viewpoint discrimination. Indeed, reviewing their lyrics and debating with impressionable students the wisdom of their song choice, all with a suspicious eye, is itself gravely concerning. Singling out anyone — much less children — for opprobrium merely because of their religion is, as the Supreme Court has said in another context, ‘odious to our Constitution.’”
After receiving the letter, the district quickly reviewed the situation and issued a response on April 29. In a statement provided by Superintendent Jim Goscinski, Allegan Public Schools acknowledged that the initial decision was based on staff members’ limited understanding of what the law permits regarding religious expression in student performances and that they got it wrong.
“Students are permitted to express their religious beliefs in the form of song in a school talent show, provided the expression is student-initiated and does not cause a substantial disruption or violate the rights of others,” the district clarified. It further committed to updating its internal review procedures and considering additional staff training “to ensure consistent understanding of student rights related to religious expression.”
Allegan Public Schools Superintendent James Antoine also addressed the controversy in an email to the National Review.
“The student was given the opportunity to audition and will be performing in the upcoming talent show,” he wrote. “We are also reviewing our internal communication processes to ensure that similar matters are appropriately reviewed before decisions are communicated to students or families.”
First Liberty Institute praised the swift resolution. In a statement, First Liberty counsel Keisha Russell said, “We are grateful to Allegan Public Schools for acting swiftly to ensure that students can freely express their faith.”
Russell emphasized that student-initiated religious speech is protected under the Constitution and that public schools must remain neutral toward religion, not hostile.
“Banning these songs solely because they are religious would have sent a dangerous message that faith has no place in public life, especially for children,” she added.
The students are now expected to proceed with their planned performances during the school’s upcoming talent showcase, allowing children to demonstrate their chosen artistic and musical talents.
First Liberty’s Toney told the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) that their involvement likely contributed to the students’ ability to perform Christian songs.
“[They] probably just wouldn’t have been allowed to participate at all, or he would have been pressured and forced to change his song and to choose different lyrics that the principal approved,” Toney said. “That’s wrong, that’s unconstitutional, and we’re so glad that didn’t happen.”
This case comes amid a growing number of national disputes involving religious expression in public schools, many of which center on what students can say or do during extracurricular or school-sponsored events. Legal experts note that the Supreme Court has consistently ruled to protect individual religious expression when it is student-led and does not represent government endorsement of a specific faith.
The resolution of this case is a powerful reminder that our faith must never be confined to the walls of a church building. In a culture where public expressions of Christianity are often met with resistance, this victory reflects the ongoing need for believers to stand boldly for truth — and teach our children to do the same.
Jesus said in Matthew 19:14, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”
When children lift their voices in praise, it should be celebrated, not silenced. Worship is not a threat to the public square but a light in the darkness. This case shows that even in public schools — where God is often pushed to the margins — there is still room for faith when Christians are willing to speak up.
First Liberty Institute’s legal intervention was essential in defending the rights of these children. But more importantly, the students’ willingness to sing about Jesus, even when told that they wouldn’t be allowed to, reflects a courageous and unashamed faith. As believers, we must equip the next generation to understand their constitutional rights and value the eternal truth that “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).
Public schools may not endorse religion, but they are also forbidden from suppressing it — especially when it comes from students’ hearts and voices. This moment should serve as a wake-up call to parents, churches, and educators. Our children need our support, our advocacy, and our example. We must not retreat from the culture but lovingly engage it.
Many K-12 schools now embrace the secular woke agenda and are hostile to Christian beliefs and parental rights. Fortunately, parents don’t have to settle for this. Liberty University Online Academy is a K-12 program designed to educate your children in the ways of the Lord while preparing them to stand firm in their faith when they graduate. Our flexible online curriculum ensures that your student is trained at your convenience and keeps YOU the ultimate educator of your children.
