November 26, 2001

Deming senior sues school over poster ban
___By Kevin Buey
___Deming Headlight
___DEMING, N.M. (BP)--A high school senior in Deming, N.M., is suing Deming Public Schools in federal court, charging religious expression violations.
___Regina Bishop, in a civil rights complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Las Cruces, alleges Deming High School censored posters promoting a See You at the Pole rally in September.
___Bishop, captain of the school's Fellowship of Christian Athletes huddle, is represented by the Alliance Defense Fund.
___The suit alleges violations of First Amendment free speech and freedom of religion guarantees, of the Equal Access Act and of the 14th Amendment.
___"I don't want to let the school get away with denying us availability and access to the things that the school has that we'd like to use just because we're a Christian group," Bishop said. "And if this is the only way to get that, then that's what we have to do."
___Bishop's father, Michael, is named in court papers as parent and guardian. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Deming Board of Education in February.
___The suit, naming the school board, Superintendent Hector Madrid and Deming High School principal Eric Cress as defendants, seeks a declaration that district policy is invalid and unconstitutional on the listed causes and asks an award of $1,000 plus costs of litigation.
___The posters the FCA wished to display contained the phrases "Taking a Stand for Christ," "I Kneel Before the Father" and "We Bow Down."
___The posters eventually displayed on campus had the words "We Bow Down" partially covered by "Fellowship of Christian Athletes."

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