WWJD? Expose Children to Threats, Abuse

People who challenge Christian privileges and the abuse of government power to promote Christianity are almost invariably subjected to harassment, threats, and even violence by their "good Christian" neighbors. This holds true if the complaints come from atheists, Jews, pagans, or even Christians themselves. This is why the identities of challengers are often kept anonymous, especially in court cases — otherwise the bullying and harassment may force people to withdraw.

What this means is that efforts to expose the identity of people making complaints is almost certainly done with the full knowledge and intention of subjecting them to the harassment, threats, and even violence that they are being protected from. People who want to reveal these identities are arguably trying to aid and abet the use of intimidation to force minorities to cease challenging unjust privileges. That's what I fear has occurred in the case of John Freshwater.

Freshwater is suing an Ohio school to keep his science teaching job after he repeatedly used his position to promote his religion and his creationist ideology, even up to the point of burning a cross into a student's arm.

Superintendent Steve Short testified that Freshwater repeatedly applied the device -- a BD-10A High Frequency Generator -- to students' skin, burning a cross into one student's arm, despite a manufacturer's warning against doing such a thing. ...

Freshwater's attorney, R. Kelly Hamilton, wanted to reveal the identity of the student whose family has sued the district because Freshwater used the generator to burn a cross into the boy's arm. ...Attorneys representing the Mount Vernon district said identifying the boy would endanger him and his family. Signs around town read, "If the Bible goes, the student goes," said Jessica Philemond, who represents the family.

Source: The Columbus Dispatch (via: Ed Brayton)

The identity of the student and their family doesn't do anything for the case of either the plaintiffs or defendants. Knowing who made the initial complaint against John Freshwater doesn't help his legal arguments; not knowing who this student was doesn't hurt Freshwater's legal arguments. On the other hand, there is little question but that releasing this to the public puts the student and his family at significantly increased risk because there has already been quite a bit of bullying, intimidation, harassment, and threats against students thought to be be less than 100% behind Freshwater's religious crusade.

I can't come up with any reason to believe that John Freshwater or his attorney, R. Kelly Hamilton, could sincerely think that releasing the student's identity to the public could in any way help their legal case, though they surely know that their legal case is precarious. I also can't come up with any reason to believe that these two wouldn't know that releasing this student's identity to the public will increase the dangers to them. At the same time, though, creationists like Freshwater like to argue against evolution by proclaiming that teaching students they evolved from other animals will cause them to act like animals... well, who's acting like animals now?