WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union is threatening to sue the U.S. Naval Academy unless it abolishes its daily lunchtime prayer, saying that some midshipmen have complained that they felt coerced to participate.
In a letter to the academy on behalf of a group of midshipmen who object to the prayers, Deborah Jeon, legal director for the ACLU of Maryland, said it was “long past time” for the academy to discontinue the tradition. She said the practice violates midshipmen’s freedom to practice religion as their conscience leads them.
In a statement, the Naval Academy rejected the request. It said some form of prayer has been offered for midshipmen at meals since the academy’s founding in 1845 and that it is “consistent with other practices throughout the Navy.”
