McKinley High’s
‘Love for God’
draws critics

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By Crystal Kua
ckua@starbulletin.com

McKinley High School's "Love for God" in its student code of honor has led to a complaint and a demand for the removal of the code from school property.

Hawaii Citizens for the Separation of State and Church said it received a complaint about the code over the weekend from a teacher at the school.

The code says that a McKinley student stands for a myriad of attributes, including "For Brotherhood of races all combined and Love for God and all Mankind."

Mitchell Kahle, president of the Hawaii Citizens for the Separation of Church and State, said the code is posted in classrooms and published in the student handbook.

The text of the handbook is also reproduced on the school's Web site.

Kahle said the laws are clear that endorsement of any religion in the public school system is prohibited.

"The problem is that it is in essence religious," said Kahle said. "It is a statement of religious belief. Nothing like that has a place in the public schools."

Kahle did not identify the complaining teacher, who has been teaching for more than 10 years, and he does not know why the teacher chose this past weekend to lodge a complaint. Kahle said the teacher told him that the code has been in existence for about five years.

"I don't really know in what ways this (code of honor) is being used," Kahle said.

Kahle sent a letter yesterday to McKinley Principal Milton Shishido and state Superintendent Pat Hamamoto demanding the immediate removal of the code from all public property and materials at McKinley.

Hamamoto and Shishido could not be reached for comment.

Kahle said, however, that he would also be satisfied with the deletion of the reference to "God" in the code.

Kahle said he wants the religious reference removed before students return from winter break next month. If the school does not comply with his request, he said he could seek legal action.