THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, December 5, 1994 TAG: 9412050063
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 194 lines
It satisfies that hunger to restore the values - civility, respect, generosity - that many say have all but vanished from society and schools.
But it also threatens to clash with people's most private and deeply held beliefs.
More than most education reforms, school prayer has triggered an emotional response, evoking both fear and fervor.
It has become the most-talked-about education issue in America since U.S. Rep. Newt Gingrich, the next speaker of the House, announced that he would push hard next year for a constitutional amendment allowing prayer in schools. The U.S. Supreme Court banned organized school prayer in 1962.
Polls show wide public support for a school-prayer amendment, but supporters face towering obstacles: First, they must word the amendment to avoid alienating the undecided while keeping the true believers happy. Then, they have to get it passed by Congress and 38 state legislatures - a feat accomplished only 12 times this century.
Political prognosticators say it's a tough call.
``Even though you hear people who say, `I'm not against school prayer,' the rub will come in the specific language,'' said Elsie M. Barnes, head of the political science department at Norfolk State University. ``Any particular word can knock out support.''
Gingrich has vowed to set a congressional vote by July, but has avoided discussing details of the wording. A recent proposal from another leader in the drive, Rep. Ernest J. Istook Jr., R.-Okla., gives a hint of what legislators might be asked to vote on. His resolution, offered in October, reads:
``Nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to prohibit individual or group prayer in public schools or other public institutions. No person shall be required by the United States or by any State to participate in prayer. Neither the United States nor any State shall compose the words of any prayer to be said in public schools.''
Istook has said it is a draft subject to revision. But by hugging the middle ground - allowing prayer in schools while steering clear of specific prayers and ensuring that no one is forced to pray - it could prove successful, said Mark Rozell, a political scientist at Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg.
``Within that construct, it certainly has broader appeal,'' Rozell said. ``It would be hard to say this violates church-state separation.''
Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of Pat Robertson's American Center for Law and Justice in Virginia Beach, which is also pushing for an amendment, says he doesn't want a ``mandated prayer'' either. But he wants the language to protect any ``student-initiated prayer.''
``We've seen cases where students wanted to pray at graduation, and their rights have been denied,'' he said. Center spokesman Gene Kapp added: ``Students need to be included in this in a very dramatic way. It needs to be spelled out.''
To be enacted, an amendment must win two-thirds approval of both the U.S. Senate and House. Then it needs to be passed by the legislatures of three-quarters of the states. ``The framers made it very, very difficult to amend the Constitution,'' Rozell said. ``They felt constitutional principles should not be changed for light . . . reasons.''
The last amendment, the 27th, was approved in 1992, more than 200 years after it was first proposed. It requires that any congressional pay raise approved during one session not take effect until the next session. Other recent attempts, such as the Equal Rights Amendment for women, have failed.
The state-by-state ratification process poses the toughest challenge, Rozell said: ``There might be enough regional opposition to provide a large enough bloc of states to stop this from going through.''
Virginia won't necessarily jump on the prayer bandwagon, said John J. McGlennon, a government professor at the College of William and Mary. ``Virginians in the General Assembly have rarely rushed to the lead of constitutional revision,'' he said. ``Virginia's history has often been to delay consideration (of amendments) or to ignore the process.''
Yet the General Assembly has already shown its sympathy for school prayer. Earlier this year, it approved a law to draft guidelines specifying what types of religious expression are permissible for students. Those rules, which are being drafted by the state Attorney General's Office, are to be presented to the State Board of Education in mid-December.
Sen. Elliot S. Schewel, D-Lynchburg, chairman of the state Senate Education Committee, opposes the movement, but he said: ``Overall, there is a good chance an amendment will pass in Virginia.''
Surveys show consistent support in the last decade for returning prayer to schools. In 1987, the last time the Gallup Poll asked the question, 68 percent of those asked favored an amendment allowing prayer. In one of the most recent polls, a Los Angeles Times survey conducted in July 1994, the proportion was even higher - 76 percent.
Diane Ravitch, a senior research scholar at New York University, said the support is fueled by schools' reluctance to touch anything even remotely suggesting religion.
``Free expression of religion should be protected, but it's not protected; it's prohibited,'' said Ravitch, who served as an assistant education secretary in the Bush administration. ``You can say almost anything in school, but religious expression is almost considered evil. Over time, a lot of resentment has built up.''
The courts also have muzzled religious expression in schools, Sekulow complained. Last month, Sekulow's law center lost a suit against Smithfield High School, which did not let a Bible club meet on campus.
The U.S. Supreme Court in 1990 decided Bible clubs had the same rights as other student groups to meet on school grounds. But U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson ruled that Smithfield High was within its rights, because the club had not applied formally for school recognition. The group has since disbanded, Sekulow said.
Bringing back prayer in schools, advocates say, will also help set society back in order. ``When they took it out, back in the '60s, is when our problems got started,'' said Teresa Murden, a mother of three students at Poplar Halls Elementary School in Norfolk. ``It won't solve the problems, but it might help.''
Cecilia Gonzalez, the mother of a student at Lake Taylor Middle School in Norfolk, agreed: ``It might put a little of the Lord's spirit in their soul so there won't be so many guns in school. And they might have more respect for their elders. It just gives you those values.''
But opponents say that's not the schools' responsibility.
Whitney Perry, a senior at Granby High School in Norfolk, said, ``It's not up to the school; it's up to the parent. If they're so worried about God, they should teach that at home.''
Michael Keating of Virginia Beach, whose son goes to kindergarten at Cape Henry Collegiate School, agreed: ``They've got all day to decide what to do about prayer and who to pray to and what prayer ought to be. They ought to work on that at home.''
Aside from constitutional issues of the separation of church and state, allowing prayer in school might cause students more - not less - strife, opponents say. ``If I want to start a prayer and Holly didn't want to say the prayer, she would feel excluded,'' Perry said. ``They might start interrogating her.''
Plus, critics say, it's impossible to construct a prayer that would satisfy everyone. None of the proposals, such as Istook's, specifies what a prayer would include.
``You just don't do justice to the various traditions to water everything down to a common denominator,'' said the Rev. Scott E. Davis, chaplain at the Methodist-affiliated Virginia Wesleyan College.
Even for evangelical Christians, there are pitfalls, said Wally Cox, an education professor at Regent University.
Following the Biblical ``golden rule'' of ``do unto others,'' students of all faiths should be allowed to say what they want, Cox said. But what if a Christian child had to hear a prayer from a religion that clashes with his - say, the ``Church of Satan''? Cox asked.
``You would lose what the Bible says to parents: `Raise them the way I would have them pray,' '' he said.
Barnes, the NSU professor who is also a Virginia Beach School Board member, says there is already room for prayer in the form of a ``moment of silence,'' which already is permitted in Virginia schools.
``If you choose to pray, you can pray to the creator of your choice,'' she said. ``If you don't wish to pray, that's fine, too. . . . The best possible thing you can do is provide a moment of silence.''
Barnes is not alone in that view. President Clinton has said that he would endorse an amendment guaranteeing the right to a moment of silence, as he did as governor of Arkansas. But that is unlikely to satisfy the supporters of school prayer.
``You don't need a constitutional amendment to be quiet,'' Sekulow said. ``A moment of silence does not affirmatively protect the rights of students to meet together to express their faith.'' MEMO: WHAT STUDENTS THINK
Virginia is one of 19 states that allow a ``moment of silence'' at
the start of the school day. Students and principals at local schools
that follow the practice silence say it's a good way to start the day.
But few say they engage in prayer. A sampling of some opinions from
seniors at Granby High: story on page A3.
ILLUSTRATION: Color photos by Bill Tiernan, Staff
``It's a good idea. You need to get your thoughts together and
set your goals for the day.''
- Tripp Nofplot
I think about what tests I have today and what homework I'm
supposed to do.''
- Angela Clark
If it's Monday, I pray that I get through the end of the week. Or
`Please let me pass that test.' ''
- Holly Higgins
Photo by BILL TIERNAN, Staff
Whitney Perry, 17, a senior at Granby High School in Norfolk, says
that prayer ``is not up to the school; it's up to the parent. If
they're so worried about God, they should tea ``charrette.'' It's a system well-known for openness, for including everyone who has an interest in shaping what a new neighborhood will look like and who will live and work there.
The architects, civic leaders and city officials will meet for a week beginning Wednesday night at the Ocean View Senior Citizen Center at 600 E. Ocean View Ave.
But one thing will not be open for discussion: The housing authority is scheduled to buy every building in this neighborhood, including the Caffees' home, and tear them down.
``It is not on the table whether it should be be cleared,'' said R. Patrick Gomez, project manager for the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority. ``That has already been resolved and decided.''
Barbara Caffee says she will present her point of view at the charrette.
``I would understand eminent domain if they were going to put schools or roads in,'' said Caffee, president of the East Ocean View Civic League and Little Creek Improvement Association. ``But to take down our home to build a home for someone else? I don't understand that.''
The housing authority got the green light late last year from the City Council to condemn the properties, but it has bought and cleared only a small fraction of the more than 1,000 homes in East Ocean View.
Gomez says the process will take years - much longer than originally planned - because the city is not receiving as quickly as anticipated about $30 million in loans from private banks.
Duany and Plater-Zyberk are famous for pioneering a type of design called Neo-Traditionalism or New Urbanism. It's a set of principles for designing suburbs or neighborhoods that resemble traditional urban neighborhoods or small towns.
Duany could not be reached for comment on what he or his wife would do at the charrette if people questioned whether East Ocean View should be razed. But in an interview in October, Duany said he had mixed feelings about replacing an existing neighborhood. Although he didn't rule out clearing the property, he said residents should be guaranteed a place to live, preferably in the new development.
The city has provided no such guarantee. If the housing authority were using federal funds to buy the homes, it would be forced to help residents and businesses relocate. But it is using loans from private banks. The agency has promised to give qualified tenants top priority for public housing and rent subsidies, for which there are waiting lists.
Also, the agency will allow tenants to live free for up to three months in buildings it buys.
East Ocean View, in a scaled-down fashion, has many attributes of neo-traditional development. Its streets are a checkerboard grid, not a mix of cul-de-sacs or curvy courts. It mixes apartments and single-family homes on the same block. It has small stores and restaurants within walking distance.
These elements are not as picturesque as in newer developments, or as well-blended or positioned. The neighborhood has problems with drugs and prostitution. Many apartments and homes are run-down. The neighborhood has vacant lots and boarded-up buildings, many owned by the housing authority and stamped ``No Trespassing, NRHA.''
If the homes were in better condition and the vacant lots were filled, the neighborhood would resemble Chick's Beach in Virginia Beach, another Bayfront neighborhood that mixes apartments, homes and businesses. It has become somewhat trendy in the past few decades.
East Ocean View has a mix of incomes and backgrounds. Census data show it is one of the most thoroughly integrated neighborhoods in Hampton Roads.
The Caffees' fears raise questions about when is it right to tear down someone's home or neighborhood. What rights should the people have who were living there first?
Some longtime residents, like the Caffees, have solid incomes. Others earn less or work less frequently. Despite the neighborhood's problems, residents say they like living close to the beach at a price they can afford. And they like their neighbors.
Caffee and other residents ask why the city couldn't selectively rebuild the area, filling in the neighborhood with better housing, rather than forcing residents to leave.
Bob L. Grove lives in a block of apartments on 30th Bay Street, where he is resident manager. He said neighborhood safety had been improving through the community policing program.
But deterioration and crime returned with the announcement last year that the area would be razed, he said.
``I like the area. I like being able to walk down to the beach,'' Grove said, as he stood against his pickup loaded with tools. ``But as long as the city keeps telling people it's so bad, it's going to stay bad. The biggest problem here is attitude.''
The owners of his apartment complex maintain the units and screen tenants, Grove said, but some landlords don't. Rather than tear the neighborhood down, the city should work harder on code enforcement, he said.
``The city should pick the buildings that are half-decent and say to the owners, `Fix it up or we'll take it from you,' '' Grove said.
On 29th Bay Street, Kelda ``Trouble'' Gibbs, 22, was about to head to a bar on Little Creek Road where she works as a go-go dancer.
``I've lived here about two years,'' Gibbs said. ``They shouldn't tear it down. People are nice; it's quiet. They don't mess with you if you don't mess with them.''
On 26th Bay, Claudette Durden, 27, was out cleaning windows of her apartment complex. Durden works for the landlord on her days off from her job as a certified nurse's assistant.
Durden says she doesn't want to move because her 8-year-old daughter would lose the friends she has made in the family's 2 1/2 years there.
``She has friends across the streets, friends out back, and friends across the road,'' Durden said, pointing with her arm.
``They all take the school bus together. It's hard having to start all over.''
Sheila Taylor, a friend of Durden's who moved to East Ocean View in July, has a different view. She said she looks forward to city relocation assistance.
East Ocean View will not be the first low- to moderate-income neighborhood Norfolk has razed. The housing authority tore down East Ghent in the 1970s and Lafayette Shores in the 1980s. In both cases, it replaced homes inhabited by poor to middle-class people with homes for people who made more money.
In preparing the East Ocean View plan, the city relied on an outside economic analysis. It estimated Norfolk would save money on services because about a third of the residents would leave the city entirely once their homes were demolished.
``The people working and making six, seven dollars an hour, where are they going to live?'' asked John E. Barkley, an East Ocean View property owner and past president of the civic league there. ``Deep down, I think the real effort is to push blacks and less affluent whites out of the city limits.''
Barbara Caffee, whose house reflects the decades of care and effort she and her husband have invested in it, vows to stay put.
``I'm not going anywhere,'' she said.
``I'm not the problem. I don't want the money. I want the house.'' MEMO: WORKING DESIGN SESSIONS
Schedule of the charrette to redesign East Ocean View. Architects
Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk will lead it. The ``working
design sessions'' are theoretically open to the public but are meant
more for civic leaders, neighborhood residents and city officials who
have a particular interest in the project. All sessions will be held at
the Ocean View Senior Citizen Center at 600 E. Ocean View Ave.
Wednesday, 7 to 10 p.m. - Opening presentation
Thursday - private interviews by Duany and Plater-Zyberk with civic
leaders and city officials. R. Patrick Gomez of the NRHA is arranging
the interviews.
Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. - Working design session
Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. - Working design session
Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. - Working design session
Tuesday, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. - Final presentation.
Coming Wednesday: The dictionary of foreign terms says ``charrette''
is a French word for a two-wheeled cart. But to architects and planners,
it's a way of designing a neighborhood or a city through an open,
inclusive process. We explain how it works.
ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by LAWRENCE JACKSON, Staff
Barbara Caffee is a longtime resident of East Ocean View. Her house
reflects the decades of care that she and her husband have invested
in it. ``I'm not going anywhere,'' she says.
Color map
Photo by Lawrence Jackson, Staff
Andrew Evans, left, and Bob L. Grove say East Ocean View changed for
the worse after Norfolk said last year that it would raze most of
the neighborhood. Grove, a resident manager for apartments on 30th
Bay Street, says, ``As long as the city keeps telling people it's so
bad, it's going to stay bad.''
KEYWORDS: EAST OCEAN VIEW REDEVELOPMENT NORFOLK REDEVELOPMENT AND
HOUSING AUTHORITY by CNB