Two schools have decided to pull out of a charity toy drive after being challenged by the American Humanist Assn. over separation of church and state issues.
East Point Academy in West Columbia, S.C., and SkyView Academy in Highlands Ranch, Colo., have withdrawn from the annual Operation Christmas Child project, run by Samaritan's Purse, an organization describing itself as a “nondenominational evangelical Christian International Relief organization.” The drive involves students filling boxes with toys, which are then sent to poor children in the developing world.
The American Humanist Assn. contacted the schools via letter, part of which said, “Because the purpose and effect of Operation Christmas Child is to induce impoverished children to convert to Christianity, the school's promotion of this program violates the Constitution.”
