A student protest is taking place at a high school in Tylertown, Mississippi following school officials decided to move their prayer meeting from school hours.
The new rule applies to all extracurricular activities, not just the prayer club, called First Priority, according to school officials.
According to WLBT-TV, First Priority “is a student-led organization that meets monthly during school hours and includes prayer, speakers, singing and other faith-based activities.”
The background
On Wednesday, a group of Tylertown students failed to show up to school in protest of the school changing their rules regarding club meetings.
According to the Daily Mail, after students found out that their club would only be allowed to meet during after school hours, they started protesting. Around 200 students rallied at the front of the school, with posterboards, and yelling “no First Priority or no peace!”
“Well, we’ve had First Priority every year, and I just love seeing all of us come together and basically share the gospel with each other,” senior Kaitlynn Brown shared with WLBT.
Another student, Aaliyah Lweis added, “When I got to school, I just went there and protested because I feel like we deserve to have First Priority in school because children these days need God.”
Students are not the only ones who are involved with the protest. Carla Bown, a grandmother who has two grandchildren in the school, showed up at the school to protest as well.
According to WLBT, Brown “believes in what the students are doing and said everybody doesn’t go to church and that this school program may be the only way they find Christ.”
“I come to support them,” Carla Brown said in an interview with WLBT. “They’re trying to take First Priority from them. They’ve had it now for 15 years, and I support them.”
According to Hattiesburg American, the students are boycotting school until they are allowed to meet during school hours once again.