soccer, the constitution, and the Iowa High School Athletic Association

At the beginning of the soccer season in Iowa, the Iowa High School Athletic Association (IAHSAA) puts together the districts and sub-state brackets and places them on their web site. The teams are grouped geographically and their is no seeding done so it is always a bit of a mystery to see where and who you might play. The last two years we have had to travel to Fort Madison a trip which takes a good two hours in a school bus. After our season ended last year I wrote a letter to the IAHSAA to express my frustration with the situation.

If anybody cares to read the letter it follows. If you don't want to read it all I made the argument that they were acting unconstitutionally by not allowing us to host district games because we do not have a flag or play the national anthem. In return I got a letter from Mr. Anderson basically telling me they wouldn't talk to me about the flag issue. After they realized the school hadn't hired a lawyer they basically ignored the school as well.

So it was sort of a surprise when the IAHSAA called this spring to ask if we would be willing to host a district game even if we didn't have a flag. It also wasn't much of a surprise when we saw the team we would get to play, Cedar Rapids Xavier, generally one of the best teams in the state.My guess its the IAHSAA's way of saying "you made your point, now we'll make ours." I just hope we can make it interesting.

June 4, 2007

Mr. David Anderson, Assistant Executive Director
Iowa High School Athletic Association

Mr. Richard Wulkow, Executive Director
Iowa High School Athletic Association
P.O. Box 10
Boone, IA 50036

Mr. Anderson and Mr. Wulkow,

I am the soccer coach at Iowa Mennonite School and after our season ended I thought it appropriate to share three concerns with you.

First, it is my understanding that Iowa Mennonite School is not allowed to host any district or substate games because the school does not perform the national anthem prior to games. Because of this, IMS teams participating in post season play have had to travel. In the case of the soccer team we made two trips to Fort Madison, a trip which in a school bus requires that we allocate 2 hours of travel time.

I am not a constitutional lawyer, but a quick perusal of Supreme Court cases suggests that any organization, particularly one described as a “State Association,” cannot compel or penalize anyone, or any group, for refusing to participate in practices designed to promote patriotism, such as the Pledge of Allegiance or the national anthem. In West Virginia State Board of Education v Barnette, 1943 the Supreme Court over turned a state law which required all students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. To quote Justice Jackson who authored the majority decision,

“To believe that patriotism will not flourish if patriotic ceremonies are voluntary and spontaneous instead of a compulsory routine is to make an unflattering estimate of the appeal of our institutions to free minds. We can have intellectual individualism [319 U.S. 624, 642] and the rich cultural diversities that we owe to exceptional minds only at the price of occasional eccentricity and abnormal attitudes. When they are so harmless to others or to the State as those we deal with here, the price is not too great. But freedom to differ is not limited to things that do not matter much. That would be a mere shadow of freedom. The test of its substance is the right to differ as to things that touch the heart of the existing order.”

I would encourage you to note the phrase, “voluntary and spontaneous instead of compulsory…” Jackson adds,

"[i]f there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein."

http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=319&invol=624 also see http://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1949/1942/1942_591/

More recent cases decided in Federal District courts seem to me to affirm the Courts decision in West Virginia v Barnette. This would include Lane v. Owens, 2003 and Holloman v Walker County Board of Education, 2004. In both these cases the idea that a school board or State could compel people to participate in patriotic rituals and then punish them in any way was denied.

I realize these cases deal with the Pledge of Allegiance rather than the national anthem but the purpose of both seems to be the same. One of the great things about the United States is that it has a form of government which allows for freedom of expression, even when that expression is not popular. At the same time our constitution also provides the freedom to not participate in certain forms of expression. To force people to participate in patriotic rituals makes a mockery of both patriotism and the principles espoused in our constitution. If we have freedom of speech, but no one dares to say anything unpopular, do we still have freedom of speech?

Mennonites as a group have at times taken positions which are unpopular because of their religious faith. They were among the first religious groups to advocate for the separation of church and state in 1525, and many of them were put to death by both religious and state authorities in the years that followed.

When the United States was founded, the idea that church and state should be separate was enshrined in the first amendment to the constitution. An idea which had at one time been unthinkable now became part of the guiding document which lays out the foundations of our government.

The school’s practice of not performing the national anthem is not done out of disrespect for this country. While it may be seen that way by some, I would argue that we Mennonites are being true to both our religious values and at the same time expressing one of the highest forms of patriotism. In the face of criticism we are willing to call our country to live up to the high ideals it expresses, the importance of the individual, and the right of individuals to express them selves, even when the idea is unpopular. In doing this we follow in a long tradition of dissent and civil disobedience, dating back to those who signed the Declaration of Independence and in so doing broke the laws of their day.

To summarize my first concern, I would argue that the position taken by your organization is unconstitutional and as such it should be changed.

My second concern is related to the first. If you are going to require schools to perform the national anthem prior to district and substate games I would argue that this should be done in a way which shows consistency and respect.

This year we played our first district game against Mid-Prairie in Wellman. The fields are nice and it is only a fifteen minute bus ride, but they did not have a flag and the national anthem was not performed. Last year when we played district games in Mount Pleasant, we had a similar experience as the national anthem was not performed nor do I recall a flag being present.

If the national anthem is so important to perform prior to a district or state athletic event that our school is penalized by not being allowed to host games, why are sites chosen for games where it cannot be performed or flags are not present?

I am frankly more troubled by the situation at Fort Madison and have included pictures taken by one of our athlete’s parents as evidence. Though there was a large flagpole at the end of the field, there was no flag present on this pole. Instead we were directed to look at the flag by the school, some distance away. If the tree had been fully leafed out I doubt the flag would have been visible. When the national anthem was played it was a scratchy recording that did little to stir patriotic fervor.

This was a common experience during the season. One school brought a flag out mounted on what appeared to be a pvc pipe rather than using the stationary flagpole at their field. When the winds blew, the pvc bent and there were times when the flag came in contact with the ground. During the season the one school which handled the national anthem in a dignified way was Columbus (Columbus Jct.). They made use of their regular flagpole and had a student sing the anthem. She did a beautiful job. It was much better than the many recordings I’ve heard played over poor sound systems.

I would ask which shows more respect? Choosing to not display a flag because of one’s religious beliefs and in doing so practicing the freedoms espoused by our country, or not putting up a flag on the flag pole at the field because, maybe it was too much bother, or maybe they just didn’t get around to it?

My third concern has to do with the size of the fields we had to play on, particularly the field at Fort Madison. Our home field is 67 yards wide, that at Mid-Prairie is 70 yards. Then we traveled to Fort Madison to play on a field that according to the officiating crew is 54 yards wide. I think the article from the Fort Madison Daily Democrat summarized it well when they wrote, “In contrast to the physical play of last Saturday’s FMHS opponent, Keokuk, Iowa Mennonite was more a finesse team.”

I know you are trying to clean up the rough play and unsporting conduct too often found in soccer. I would argue that one easy way to do this is to encourage schools to play on fields which are at least 65 yards wide. By not assigning district and substate games to fields which are less than 65 yards, I think you would be helping both soccer, and you would encourage schools to improve their facilities. As I reflect on our season, the roughest and most physical games we played were on the smaller fields.

I wouldn’t mind the two hour trip if we had the opportunity to play on a full size field but to travel that far to play on a very narrow field was not enjoyable. The narrow field had a detrimental affect on my teams play in both games we played at Fort Madison, the one we won against Fairfield and the one we lost to Fort Madison.

One could argue that teams should be able to adapt to different sizes of fields and differing conditions, but imagine what would happen if a basketball team showed up to discover the rims were at 11 feet or maybe just 9 feet, or the football team found the football field was going to be 120 yards long and 65 yards wide. We don’t expect this to happen and for soccer to be taken seriously, I would suggest that your association adopt minimum standards for a soccer field. As a start I would encourage you to choose to assign district and substate games to sites where the fields will be similar in size to those played on at the State tournament.

Thank you for your patience in reading this and for your efforts to provide quality activities for the young people of Iowa.

Marcus Miller

Mennonites and "Fiddler on the Roof"

The school musical this year is "Fiddler on the Roof. " The director asked if I would write something for the program to help some folks understand how the story might connect with Mennonites. This is what I came up with. The faculty and our families were able to watch the dress rehearsal and the kids did a wonderful job. I would encourage anyone to see it, but I think both performances are sold out.

"Fiddler on the Roof" tells a story to which Mennonites should easily relate. At its most basic level it is a story similar to the one faced by our Mennonite ancestors in 16^th and 17^th century Europe. Facing persecution because of their religious beliefs advocating believer’s baptism, separation of church and state, and nonresistance, Mennonites sought peace in the rural agricultural villages of Europe. Hoping to practice their faith without fear of losing their homes or their lives, Mennonites, became “the Quiet in the Land.” For many Mennonites their identity became closely tied to the land.

Just as Tevye, his family, and his fellow Jews, experienced persecution because of their beliefs and ethnic identity, Mennonites experienced persecution and faced similar choices. What does it mean to leave a place, as miserable as it might be, when your identity is bound up in that place? Though the villagers say, “Someone should have set a match to this place years ago.” They go on to ask, “Where else could Sabbath be so sweet?” Mennonites could have sang much the same as they left the Swiss cantons, or the war-torn Alsace-Lorraine for North America, while Mennonites from other parts of Europe moved to Russia.

In both Russia and North America, religious beliefs became intricately tied to cultural identity. To be Mennonite or Amish in colonial Pennsylvania meant that one spoke German, dressed in a particular way, and conducted themselves in ways approved by the community. Ties to this new land grew strong and deep as Mennonite and Amish farmers tilled the soil. Their farms became the basis for strong rural communities and churches across the United States in places like Lancaster, Holmes County, Goshen, Berne, and Kalona.

The story in "Fiddler on the Roof" can also help those of us who are Mennonites think about what it means to be Mennonite as the story addresses questions of tradition, change, and faith. Occasionally I ask my Mennonite students if they have ever felt different because they are Mennonite. Often they are puzzled by the question. “Why should I feel different because I’m a Mennonite,” they ask. Mennonites of an earlier generation who grew up with coverings, cape dresses and plain coats might respond, “how could you not feel different?”

Steeped in the traditions of his faith and his village Teyve knows his place in society and he knows what is expected of him. Tevye’s traditions and beliefs are challenged as his daughters find their own mates rather than relying on the matchmaker. How far can he go in accepting change and at the same time remain faithful to his religious values and those of his community?

Mennonites in southeast Iowa face similar questions of faith and identity. What happens when the traditions are challenged? Coverings, cape dresses, and plain coats have been laid aside by the vast majority of Mennonites. Many found it liberating and most of us would not want to go back, but what does it mean for our religious identity when we are not so visibly different from those around us? As Tevye asks, “One little time you pull out a prop, and where does it stop? Where does it stop?”

What happens when the family farm is sold and the sons and daughters who grew up on the land, move to the city “far from the home I love?”

Is it our faith or our identity which is affected when we give up four part a cappella singing for the more contemporary sounds of guitars, drums and praise songs?

Even this place, Iowa Mennonite School was built, in part to preserve Mennonite identity in the face of rapid social change brought on by World War II. As we begin to look more like those around us, will we be tempted to give up more foundational beliefs of our identity and faith, such as nonresistance, which have defined us for over 450 years to avoid the embarrassment of being different.

Can we sing to our children, “Strengthen them, Oh Lord, and keep them from the strangers’ ways,” knowing that in doing so we are asking our children to make a conscious decision to accept our traditions, our faith and our identity, as flawed as they may be, and to make them their own.

These questions are not easily answered but it is, I believe important for us to ask them as we seek to remain faithful.