MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE: THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS IN THE CLASSROOM by Kristy Powell A project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF EDUCATION IN CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY Ogden, UT November 12, 2019 Approved ______________________________ DeeDee Mower, Ph.D. ______________________________ Vincent Bates, Ph.D. ______________________________ Stephanie Speicher, Ph.D. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 1 Acknowledgements I would like to express my appreciation to the instructors and professors of the university, who trained and molded this middle-aged, stay-at-home mother, into a teacher. For Dr. DeeDee Mower who ignited a passion in me that I did not know I had. Your words of wisdom and hidden curriculum are locked in my heart. For Dr. Vincent Bates who awoke me to my bias and challenged me to inspect how I view the world. I will forever be grateful and changed because of you. For my dad who never gave up on me and encouraged me to keep going. I could not have done this without you. For my students who show up every day expecting so much from me. I hope to live up to your expectations. Thank you for inspiring me to keep learning and growing as a teacher and as a woman. For my friends, and Coco Ladies, that had to listen to me endlessly drone on about all the aspects of education that I find fascinating. To Dr. Alisa Vanlangeveld who has been my sounding board and friend for over 30 years. I especially want to recognize my sister and coworker, Mrs. Mercer, for being my mentor and helping me navigate my first years of teaching. Finally, and most importantly, for my husband and daughters. Thank you for putting up with the highs and lows of this journey. You have been my rock. This degree is ours; it was fought for by everyone of us. And to schoolchildren everywhere, may you always feel seen, heard, and included. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 2 Table of Contents NATURE OF THE PROBLEM...................................................................................................... 4 Literature Review ........................................................................................................................ 7 Benefits of Friendship ............................................................................................................. 7 Consequences of Failure of Friendship ................................................................................... 7 Lived Discrimination Experiences .......................................................................................... 8 Overt and covert faith-based bullying ................................................................................... 10 Lack of research on religious discrimination in schools ....................................................... 11 Religion in Utah..................................................................................................................... 11 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Dominance and Education Laws .............. 13 Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ View of ‘other’ ................... 15 PURPOSE .................................................................................................................................... 17 METHOD ...................................................................................... 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Participants and Procedures ...................................................................................................... 18 Data Collection .......................................................................................................................... 19 RESULTS .................................................................................................................................... 20 Microaggressions ...................................................................................................................... 21 Overt Faith-based Bullying. ...................................................................................................... 22 MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 3 DISCUSSION ............................................................................................................................... 26 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................. 28 MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 4 NATURE OF THE PROBLEM Childhood peer relations and friendship are critical in the cognitive and social development of children (Erikson, 1950, 1963). The greatest predictor of adult adaptation is not grades or classroom behavior, it is how well a child gets along with other children (Hartup, 1990). The benefits of positive childhood social interactions include academic achievement, social competence, and positive character development (Borenstein, 1996; Flashman, 2012; Healy, 2011; Ladd, 1999; Zucchetti, Candela, Sacconi, & Rabaglietti, 2015). However, negative peer relations can severely affect a child and thereby cause school disengagement, and chronic peer maltreatment (Buhs, Ladd, Herald, 2006; Iyer, Kochenderfer-Ladd, Eisenberg, & Thompson, 2010, Ladd 1999). School disengagement and chronic peer maltreatment may impede future academic performance. Studies have shown that being a religious minority, in a community with a religious majority, can be a barrier to friendship formation (Dupper, Forrest-Banks, & Lowry-Carusillo, 2014; Forrest-Bank, & Dupper, 2016). The U. S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights reported groups such as atheists and Muslims report being negatively stereotyped, pressured to pass as religious, and victims of oppression. It was also reported that 8% of harassment or bullying involved allegations on the basis of religion (U.S. Department of Education, 2018). It is important to note that these are reported cases; unreported cases are unaccounted for. Even though it is unknown how many cases go unreported, it is known that religious minorities face covert and overt faith-based bullying (Blumenfeld, 2006; Beatbullying, 2008; Forrest-Bank & Dupper, 2016). Faith-based bullying is a unique bullying situation. The First Amendment calls for a separation of church and state; other laws including New York State’s Dignity for All Students Act and the Individual with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, should prevent this type of MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 5 marginalization; however, values and beliefs are an essential part of identity and cannot be boxed up, or separated (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 2004; Magaldi-Dopman, Park-Taylor, 2013; New York State Education Department, 2012; U.S. Constitution, 1791). In some cases, cultural environment mixes with religion and the line between church and state gets blurred. This was the case in Poland, where Catholics and non-religious citizens were both accusing each other of religious discrimination (Anczyk, & Grzymala-Moszczynska, 2018). Although some studies have been done of religious marginalization and faith-based bullying on adolescents, overall there is a dearth of research on this topic (Dupper, Forrest-Bank, 2014, 2016; Magaldi-Dopman, & Park-Taylor, 2014; Nadal, et. al., 2012). Given the importance of friendship on academic and cognitive development in childhood, and religion as a barrier to forming friendships, research on religious-based microaggressions in elementary schools with a dominant religion, needs to be done in Utah. Utah is similar to Poland in that it has a cultural environment that mixes with the dominant religion. In Utah, that religion is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. According to the religion’s website, as of 2019, approximately 68.01% of Utah residents belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2019). Utah’s unique demographic and religious roots shape the mindset of Utahn’s and their views of those not belonging to “the church” (Dawidowics, 2003; Esplin, & Randall., 2014; Huerta, Flemmer, 2005; Pratt, et. al., 1997). Religious microaggressions and overt faith-based bullying, could be impacting the academic and cognitive development of elementary age children that do not identify as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In 2018, Aviva Vogelstein testified as an expert witness before the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights stating, “Religious harassment and bullying in our schools is a major problem that the federal government is inexplicably failing to MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 6 address. We need better data, and we need serious and immediate action” (Vogelstein, 2018). Faith-based bullying needs to be addressed, accounted for, and if the data calls for it, explicitly included in school anti-bullying programs and procedures. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 7 LITERATURE REVIEW Benefits of Friendship Social interactions are important in childhood development (Borenstein, 1996, Erikson, 1950; Ladd, 1999). Friends play an important role in education because they provide support and resources that can encourage or discourage academic achievement (Flashman, 2012). Friendships form when people have similar values, spend time in similar ways and understand one another’s decisions and choices. Therefore, high-achievement can be reinforced and maintained when high-achieving students have high-achieving friends (Flashman, 2012). An Italian study found that positive friendship quality in third grade predicted school achievement in fourth grade and that peer acceptance is associated with academic achievement (Zucchetti et al., 2015). This study also found that having a first successful approach to the school experience could guarantee a child's positive performance in later school years (Zucchetti et al., 2015). Not only does friendship influence academics, peers play an essential role in the socialization of interpersonal competence and affect an individual’s long-term social adjustment (Ladd, 1999). Children who are well-liked by peers have higher levels of perceived competence and self-efficacy. Children disliked by peers are withdrawn (Ladd, 1999). Friendship and the quality of children’s friendships are important predictors of children’s emotional well-being (Ladd, 1999). Consequences of Failure of Friendship Abusive peer relations during childhood has been linked to anxiety, loneliness, depression, and school maladaptation (Boulton & Underwood, 1992; Ladd, 1999). Researchers MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 8 and educators agree that problems in children’s social experiences need to be detected as early as possible (Iyer, R., et. al., 2010). Children who were less well accepted by their kindergarten classmates were at greater risk for peer maltreatment in subsequent grades (Buhs, Ladd & Herald, 2006). Studies have shown victimized and rejected children are at risk of less frequent participation in classroom activities and lower levels of interest to succeed in school. Thereby lowering their academic achievement and process (Buhs, Ladd, and Herald, 2006; Iyer et. al., 2010). Marginalization occurs because, as peers become aware of children who are targeted, they protect themselves by not associating with the targeted peer. Thereby forcing that peer to participate less in classroom activities as a result of exclusion. Children harassed by peers seek to avoid the classroom as a means of escaping further abuse (Buhs, Ladd, & Herald, 2006). Poor peer relations during childhood have been consistently implicated in the etiology of later deviance (Ladd, 1999). Friendship is critical to the development of character and a flourishing life (Healy, 2011). Therefore, friendship is a crucial issue for schools. Greater attentiveness should be paid to how schools might make space for friendship (Boulton & Underwood, 1992; Healy, 2011). Friendship is also critical for childhood development and religion is a potential barrier to friendship formation. Thus, children who attend schools with religious majority may be at risk. Lived Discrimination Experiences Professional journals in education have focused on race, ethnicity, gender, and culture as important diversity variables, the extent to which students’ religion and spirituality influence their development and education has largely been a neglected topic (Magaldi-Dopman & Park-Taylor, 2014; Nadal, et al., 2012). Unlike other student demographic identifiers, students’ religious and spirituality identity is one that is surrounded by both religious and political taboo MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 9 (Magaldi-Dopman & Park-Tyalor, 2014). Students identified experiences of being teased, called names, insulted or attacked in school because of their religious minority status (Forrest-Bank & Dupper, 2016). Research and theoretical scholarship suggest that atheist individuals are often negatively stereotyped, pressured to pass as religious and victims of oppression (Brewster, et al., 2016). In an online survey of atheist identity, a mother described an instance where her six-year-old son was cornered in first grade by three other six-year-olds who screamed at him, “You WILL believe in Jesus! You WILL believe in Jesus!!” (Arcaro, 2010). Atheists have also reported subtle prejudice such as being avoided or excluded from social gatherings for being atheist (Brewster, et al., 2016). Children who do not participate in the school’s religious life often experience exclusion and indirect religious discrimination (Anczyk & Grzymala-Moszczynska, 2016). Many young people who are members of religious minority groups often face challenging, sometimes painful, incidents at school because of their religious status (Forrest-Bank & Dupper, 2016). Schools can be a place where students from minority religions feel marginalized and even abused (Dupper, et al., 2015). Norms of Christian privilege and marginalization of other faith communities and non-believers in the schools are conveyed by curricular materials which focus on holidays, traditions, accomplishments and the importance of a European-heritage, Christian experience. Students who are Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Jewish, and other faiths and non-believers, see few if any people who believe like them or adhere to their cultural expression in their classroom lessons (Blumenfeld, 2006). The school calendar is organized to meet the needs of many Christian faith communities, while marginalizing others. Jewish students, teachers, and staff are required to request an excuse from school to attend religious services for their “High Holy Days” on and between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kipper. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 10 Jehovah’s Witnesses, who do not celebrate holidays, must seek to be excused from the observance of holiday celebrations (Blumenfled, 2006). At a time in development when there is a profound need to connect with peers, being different in any way as an adolescent may be stressful (Forrest-Bank & Dupper, 2016). Overt and covert faith-based bullying Microaggressions tend to leave targets feeling angry and confused due to their subtle nature. Studies have found that microaggressions can be physically and psychologically draining, often leading to higher levels of stress and poor mental health outcomes (Nadal, Wong, et al., 2011). One of the most interesting and complex dynamics involved with microaggression is that, because they tend to be subtle and automatic, they often are not even recognized as discriminatory by the perpetrators or victims. The perpetrators might be completely unaware that they have said or done something harmful, and the victims might not see any particular isolated events as harmful and remain unaware of the cumulative effect the incidents are having on them. (Sue et al., 2007) Another form of faith-based bullying occurs when adolescents experienced discomfort when they were expected to know certain facts about their religion but did not. Peers would use this gap in their knowledge as a “weapon” with which to attack them (Forrest-Bank & Dupper, 2016). Students also reported feeling attacked and experience emotional turmoil when they feel they are viewed as a heathen or a bad person. These feelings are likely to result in lasting emotional scars and damage religious identity (Forrest-Bank & Dupper, 2016). A Universalist Unitarian, Muslim, and Jewish students all shared examples of feeling viewed as “bad” and MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 11 experiencing social isolation and marginalization due to religious minority (Forrest-Bank & Dupper, 2016). Lack of research on religious discrimination in schools There is a dearth of research focusing on microaggressions toward people from religious minority groups (Dupper, et.al., 2014; Nadal, et. al., 2012; Stopbullying.gov, 2017). Professional journals in education have focused on race, ethnicity, and culture; however, the influence of religion and spirituality in students’ education and development has largely been a neglected topic (Magaldi-Dopman, & Park-Taylor, 2014). There is no identifiable research on microaggressions, ostracization, or marginalization of elementary age students due to a dominant religion. Studies have been done on adolescents (Forrest-Bank, et. al., 2015, 2016), but not primary age students. Additionally, no known data has been collected among primary or secondary age students in Utah. Religion in Utah Utah has a unique religious demographic. In July, 2018, The United States Census Bureau estimated the population of Utah to be 3,161,105 (United States Government Census, 2018). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reported their membership in Utah to be 2,109,578 as of April 2019 (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2019). This means over 68% of Utahns are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Utah was founded and settled by religious people, seeking a place to practice their religion in peace, known as the Mormon Pioneers (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2019). On July 24, 1847, the first company of pioneers belonging to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints entered the Salt Lake Valley by hand carts and covered wagons after MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 12 trekking across the mountains and plains. The pioneers had tried settling in other states including Ohio and Missouri, and they built the city of Nauvoo, Illinois, but had to leave due to religious persecution. When reaching the unsettled Salt Lake Valley, Church President, Brigham Young, stated that the journey was finally over, the pioneers has finally arrived to the right place. Young named the area “Deseret”, meaning honeybee, for the hive of activity that would soon inhabit the area. In the years that followed, at least 236 pioneer companies of approximately 60,000 religious pioneers crossed the plains of America for Utah. They transformed the desert valley into the prosperous Salt Lake City, and surrounding area (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2019). By 1890, schools existed across the Utah territory. Schools were public in name because they served the general populace, however the ecclesiastical leaders held the keys to both the schoolhouses and the church doors. They also controlled who was hired. From the beginning, public education in Utah was Latter-day Saint education (Esplin & Randall, 2014). Jordan School District History states that it was created in 1904 with 3,354 students. Its name and original boundaries were taken from the Jordan Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. At the time, the boundaries of the church spanned the breadth of the Salt Lake Valley from east to west, and length of the valley from roughly Midvale to the south end of the valley. To the north, was the Granite School District, named after the Granite Stake of the church. It was divided predominantly from 6400 South from the Wasatch Mountain Range to the Oquirh Mountains. The school districts were created in name and in boundaries to the religious stakes in the region. Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of the Humanities at Yale, compares Mormons to Jews. The Mormons undertook an exodus as a scorned people, as did the Jews. He stated that, MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 13 “Mormons are a religion that has become a people.” (The New Yorker, 2002). Utah is a state that has had a homogeneous religion-based culture for 100 years. The religion determined acceptable attitudes, behaviors and activities for residents (Dawidowicz, 2003). In 1983, Toney, McKewen-Stinner, and Kan, conducted a study on the reasons people migrated to Utah. They recognized Utah as a prime example of a distinct cultural region in the United States due to the high volume of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They found that migration to Utah was significantly impacted by the location of the religion’s leadership, the “gathering principle” taught in the religion, and the conviction of the pioneers to establish a community in which the church’s beliefs and lifestyles would prevail. (Toney et. al, 1983). A little over a decade later, Kontuly and Smith (1995) conducted another study on migrants to Utah and found the primary reason for migration being employment and educational opportunities, aligning with average American migration. This shows that although Utah was originally settled by a religious group, it is gaining popularity by people for non-religious reasons. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Dominance and Education Laws The state had a definite reaction to the immigration of non-LDS (Latter-day Saint) residents by enacting laws to try to prevent change (Dawidowicz, 2003). For example, state law restricted education on such subjects as sex education, teaching the only option as abstinence and, for unwed mothers, the surrender of their child to adoption. These are also the only acceptable options for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Dawidowicz, 2003). In the 1930’s Brigham Young University, survived the closure era of the Great Depression due to its teacher training capabilities. It flooded public schools with Latter-day Saint trained teachers in which officials hoped would create a better atmosphere in the public MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 14 schools, covertly influencing the youth (Esplin & Randall, 2014). State leaders also scheduled a daily religion training program, during the school day, for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints aged 14-18 called “seminary.” Utah law allows students to to be released during the school day, with their parents' permission, for LDS religious instruction though they do not receive credit toward graduation for those classes. In 1996, a non-LDS group in Utah challenged the law allowing Utah to give school credit for attending seminary on the basis of non-LDS students did not have an equivalent credit option (Dawidowicz, 2003). In 2010, Utah had 150,572 high school students. 83,634 of them were enrolled in seminary program. 2011, a lawyer for the Summum religious group questioned the Canyons School District on a decision not to sell land to anyone for a seminary after Summum expressed interest in the land for their own seminary. Education leaders claim it is not illegal or uncommon for Utah school districts to sell land to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to build their seminary buildings so that they are adjacent to public schools (Schencker, 2011). In 2002, Salt Lake City, the headquarters for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, held the Winter Olympics. This brought attention to both the culture and dominant religion of Utah. The Economist reported that in Utah, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was “the 800-pound gorilla which didn’t need to do anything to seem threatening” (The Economist, 2002). The First Amendment calls for separation of church and state. However, as seen above, it is difficult to separate the religion from the culture and therefore, from the state and the laws. Especially if those making the laws belong to the dominant religion. In January of 2019, The Salt Lake Tribune reported that nine of every 10 legislators in Utah are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Davidson, 2019). MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 15 The First Amendment was meant to protect religious freedom and prevent the monopolization of one dominant religious group, however as a side effect it has left the spiritual and religious needs of students largely overlooked (Magaldi-Dopman, Park-Taylor, 2014; U.S. Constitution, 1791). Some laws have sought to include student spirituality. New York State’s Dignity for All Students Act requires school personnel to acknowledge students’ spiritual and religious identities and is aimed to give legal protection to public school students who seek a safe learning environment free from religious discrimination, intimidation, or bullying (New York State Education Department, 2012; Magaldi-Dopman, Park-Taylor, 2014). Federal legislation of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) have four overarching goals, equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for individuals with disabilities. It has now identified spirituality and religion as an essential element to consider for students (Ault, 2010). Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ View of ‘other’ In 2005, a study was done on six pre-service secondary teachers’ views about diversity (Huerta, & Flemmer, 2005). The participating pre-service teachers were all members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Pre-service teachers must engage in self-examination of identity, attitudes and assumptions with issues of privilege, group membership, religion, gender and language. The researchers found this was difficult for the participant pre-service teachers due to their lack of experience living in or learning about diverse communities, due to their being raised in Utah’s dominant religion and culture. The participants noted that while growing up in Utah, they were discouraged from interacting with community members outside their faith (Huerta, & Flemmer, 2005). This lack of interaction came from the members themselves and not from the leaders of the church. A 2001 Salt Lake Tribune opinion poll found MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 16 that two-thirds of Utahns found a cultural fault between members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and non-members. (The Economist, 2002). In 2019, a fourth-grade elementary teacher in Bountiful, Utah was placed on administrative leave after insisting that a student wash off an Ash Wednesday cross. The teacher claimed it never occurred to her that it would have been anything more than a smudge of dirt. Utah Republican Senator Todd Weiler stated that this is something that happens when people aren’t exposed to other cultures or religions (“Utah teacher apologizes” 2019; “Utah teacher forces student”, 2019; Salt Lake Tribune, 2019). This fault can be seen in Salt Lake City’s two main competing newspapers, The Salt Lake Tribune, privately owned, and The Deseret News, which is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A recent study found that the newspapers took very different approaches to the framing and coverage of religion and particularly to a controversy arising after the church and city lost a First Amendment battle with the ACLU over an easement at Temple Square. The study found that the newspapers were appealing to different audiences largely divided on religious grounds (Scott & McDonald, 2005). There is limited research on religious discrimination and its impact on friendship formation in schools, and a notable lack of research focused on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints majority in the state of Utah. The literature shows that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the dominant religion in Utah. Research needs to be done to explore microaggressions against minority religious students in elementary schools in Utah. This research will be beneficial in identifying covert and overt microaggressions, ostracization or bullying due to minority religious status, which can then lead to informed, data driven, programs to end religious microaggression in Utah. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 17 PURPOSE Childhood friendships and peer relations play an important role in the development of cognitive and social skills (Erikson, 1950, 1963). Studies have shown that belonging to a religious minority, in a community with a religious majority, can be a barrier to friendship formation (Dupper, Forrest-Banks, & Lowry-Carusillo, 2014; Forrest-Banks & Dupper, 2016). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the dominant religion in Utah. There is no identifiable research on this religion, in this area; and its social and cognitive developmental impact on elementary students who do not identify with this faith. The purpose of this ethnographic qualitative study is to probe experiences and impacts of childhood development in elementary students who do not identify as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in an area where the majority of the student body identifies with that religion. This study will investigate in depth, if microaggressions or overt faith-based bullying exist in elementary schools in this region. This study will be guided by the following research questions: 1) Are students in schools with a dominant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints religious culture experiencing microaggressions or overt faith-based bullying? 2) Do the microaggressions or faith-based bullying impact the development of elementary age children socially? It needs to be addressed that the researcher has potential biases. The researcher was born and raised in Utah, and educated in the public-school system, and has always been an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The researcher is currently raising three children in the public-school system, whom also identify as members of the dominant MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 18 religion. The researcher is currently an elementary school teacher in a public school with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as the dominant religion. As a parent, and a schoolteacher, I have witnessed microaggressions towards religious minority children in a school setting. METHOD Participants and Procedures This study design did not include direct evaluation or contact with children. This decision was made to avoid highlighting any sense of non-belonging that the child may or may not recognize, and thus start or exacerbate a potentially difficult situation. For simplicity in the study, the researcher used a non-random snowball sampling by posting on social media and asking others to share. Participants used a link that directed them to Survey Monkey. Participants were self-identified adults; whose children attend, or attended, a Utah public elementary school, who are not or were not, a part of the dominant religion. The first page of the Survey Monkey was an Informed Consent Form. Participants were informed that their participation was voluntary, there would be no compensation, and that they could opt out at any time. Participants gave consent by continuing to the questionnaire. The researcher originally sought 12 respondents in a two-week period. After the social media post was live, the researcher received 52 participants in the first four days. The researcher closed the Survey Monkey on day six with a total of 63 participants. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 19 Data Collection Religious cultural interaction was measured by asking participants to identify four different types of religious cultural interactions and select all that have been experienced by their child(ren): 1) normal culture presentation of religion (such as singing religious songs at school), 2) casual references to the religion which reinforce the feeling of “other” (such as asking another student when they are getting baptized) 3) microaggressions (such as implying that being different is “less than” and implying that student should be “more like me”), 4) overt faith-based bullying (such as not playing with someone due to their religious affiliation). Participants were then asked three follow-up open-ended questions. If you checked any of the previous options, please explain below. Is there anything else you would like to share? How would you characterize your relationship with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Responses from Survey Monkey were transferred to NVivo software for analysis. Themes and sub themes began to emerge. Themes included, Feeling of Other with the subthemes: exclusion, jargon, and lost friendships; Imposing Values with the subthemes: drinks, church attendance, Sunday activities, and modesty; and Church and State Overlap. Each theme was then coded to microaggressions or overt faith-based bullying, thus following our guiding question number one, “Are students in schools with a dominant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints religious culture experiencing microaggression or faith-based bullying.” Data were kept confidential by the researcher. Identifying information was immediately removed. The file was kept on the researcher’s password protected university account. The individual file was also password protected. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 20 RESULTS This research was guided by the following two questions: 1) Are students in schools with a dominant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints religious culture experiencing microaggressions or overt faith-based bullying? 2) Do the microaggressions or faith-based bullying impact the development of elementary age children socially? As seen in the chart below, students in a school with a dominant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints religious culture, that are not part of the religion, are indeed, experiencing microaggressions or overt faith-based bullying. Of the 63 total respondents, 62 identified at least one of these religious cultural experiences. Seventy-six percent of respondents identified microaggressions, while sixty-nine percent identified overt faith-based bullying happening to their child in a Utah public school. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 21 Microaggressions Microaggressions were identified as value statements such as commenting that it is bad to go shopping or go to the movies on a Sunday. It needs to be recognized that value statements are on a continuum of normal culture presentation to microaggressions. Only participants who self-identified the experience as a microaggression were included in this category. Seventy-six percent of respondents selected Microaggressions as having been experienced by their child. Nine went on to share their lived experience. One third identified drinks in the home, such as coffee or alcohol, which are forbidden for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as being the topic of the microaggression. “One of my daughter's friends said she did not feel comfortable in our home because there is a coffee maker in our kitchen.” Microaggressions tend to be subtle and automatic; often they are not even recognized as discriminatory by the perpetrators or the victims (Sue et. al., 2007). Other value statements included, “Other children commenting that my children are ‘not as good’ because they are not LDS.” Due to their subtlety in nature, microaggressions can be physically and psychologically draining; which often leads to higher levels of stress and poor mental health (Nadal, Wong, et al., 2011). Value statement microaggressions are on a continuum from drinks in the home to open suggestions of “righteousness.” One respondent wrote: Autistic child was struggling with controlling Kindergarten teacher. The teacher told me that if I would just reinforce in the home to “Choose the Right” that his behaviors would improve. Suggesting that religion would somehow be the element that suddenly changed an autistic child’s behavior. Not behavioral therapy, but righteousness. Also suggesting that because we aren’t part of a religion our home must now include terrible behaviors that created this terrible child. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 22 This lived experience of a parent exposes the microaggressions based on value statements by the majority to those belonging to the minority. Overt Faith-based Bullying Social bullying involves leaving someone out on purpose. Verbal bullying includes saying mean things. Bullying behavior must be aggressive, include an imbalance of power, and have the potential to happen more than once; this includes verbal and social bullying (Stopbullying.gov, 2017). Overt faith-based bullying was identified as excluding someone due to religion or using hurtful religious-based words. Sixty-nine percent of respondents identified experiencing Overt Faith-based Bullying. Twenty-seven participants went on to share their lived experiences in the open-ended question. Two major themes emerged in the experiences of faith-based bullying; that of Losing Friendships and Being Told They Are Bad. Losing Friendships. The data showed forty-nine experiences of exclusion, with fifteen reports of lost friendships. Due to the complexity of the issue, only those who selected Overt Faith-based Bullying and specifically identified knowing that religion was the reason for the lost friendship were included in this theme. Ten participants wrote about experiences of losing friends upon the discovery they were not members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. One participant wrote: Second grade was the worst as far as bias and aggression. The kids talked a lot about baptism that year and would ask my son how come he wasn’t a Mormon and wasn’t getting baptized. The worst incident though was when my son was invited to play at another boy’s home. My son said that the child’s mother asked if he was Mormon. That MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 23 next week in school that child said his mother told him that he couldn’t play with my son any more because he was Mormon. This is just one example of lived experiences that Utahns are facing who do not identify as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As stated above, ten participants identified knowing that religion was the specific cause of a lost friendship. Being told they are bad. The second theme that emerged from those who identified Overt Faith-based Bullying was that of children being told they are bad. This study had similar results to a 2016 study where students reported feeling attacked and experience emotional turmoil when they felt they were viewed as a heathen or a bad person. Feelings such as these are likely to result in lasting emotional scars and damage religious identity (Forrest-Bank & Dupper, 2016). Ten participants in this study shared lived experiences of their child being told they are bad, with six of those specifically mentioning “hell” in their statement, saying that their child was told they would go to hell. These instances seemed to occur during the formative years of daycare and elementary school. One participant wrote, “My son is bullied physically and emotionally for being a nonmember in school as well as daycare. They make comments like he is going to hell. His parents don’t love him enough to be a forever family.” Another participant shared, “My five-year-old was asked if he was a ‘bad guy’ because ‘only bad guys don’t believe in god.’” The faith-based bullying also extends to those of other faiths. One Catholic participant shared the following, My son was in 3rd grade (public school) when another boy told my son he was going to hell because my son didn't’ go to his church. My son explained that he goes to a Catholic church. The boy insisted that my son was going to hell because his church (LDS) was the only true church. My son told the principal of the situation. The boy would not apologize MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 24 so he received a 2-day school suspension. The mother of this boy told the parent in her ward my son was the reason her son received a suspension and instead of being bullied by 1 boy, now 9 boys were bullying my son. We had to switch schools. It is important to note that the majority of bullying was that of losing friendships due to religion and/or being told they are bad. Only two participants reported an episode of violence by members of the dominant faith however neither reported that faith was specifically the reason for the violence, only that they were members. Conclusion In conclusion, the data clearly shows that yes, religious minority students, in schools with a dominant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints religious culture are experiencing microaggression and overt faith-based bullying. Given the experiences shared, it stands to reason that the microaggressions or faith-based bullying of losing friendship, or being told that you are bad, would impact the development of elementary age children socially. As one participant wrote, “Religious people tend to disregard people’s feelings when expressed to them that they are being exclusive and elitist. They don’t seem to really care about anything that would make them feel uncomfortable or that would challenge their ways of doing things. It’s a tough crowd to fit in with. When a full community is of a dominant religion, it’s very easy to become invisible and feel left out and lonely.” As previously stated, negative peer relations can severely affect a child and thereby cause school disengagement, and chronic peer maltreatment (Buhs, Ladd, Herald, 2006; Iyer, Kochenderfer-Ladd, Eisenberg, & Thompson, 2010, Ladd 1999). Being told by peers that you are bad or having someone who was once a friend no long play with you due to religion, is going to impact school disengagement, and may impede future academic performance. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 25 As previously disclosed, I am an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Throughout the course of this project I have been asked many times why I chose this topic for my research. My answer is that I love my students, all of them. It pains me to witness microaggressions and overt faith-based bullying by members of my own faith. I echo the statement of this participant, “It makes me incredibly sad that a religion preaching love and acceptance does exactly the opposite unless you convert.” I believe that the majority of the time, the aggressor or bully is not aware of the damage or ostracization they have caused. As one participant put it, I think that the majority of my children's interaction with LDS cohorts are positive. However, there are several instances where comments have been made or their religion has negatively influenced an interaction. I have to say that, most of the time, it appears that they don’t realize they are being hurtful/exclusive. It seems they are sheltered/naive to the fact that other people might not share their beliefs. On the other hand, the harsher experiences my children have endured are definitely intentional and righteous-driven. I propose the following action steps to be taken to address the issues of religious based microaggressions and faith-based bullying that occurs in Utah elementary schools. 1) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints needs to recognize that this is a problem in Utah. Historically, and outside of Utah, members are in the minority. However, there needs to be recognition that in Utah, members are the majority. The Utah curriculum needs to address inclusion. Religious teachers in Utah need to be explicitly instructed on how to take their lessons one step further to include how to interact with children that do not share their faith, 2) Schools need to include a professional development course on recognizing faith-based bullying and how MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 26 to address it, 3) At home, parents need to have open discussions with their children on how to interact and include children not of their faith. DISCUSSION Utah was founded and settled by religious people. It has a unique demographic. One respondent commented, “It’s not like other cities where there is more diversity, but here in Utah we have such an overwhelming majority in the dominant faith it’s hard to overcome.” This participants’ sentiment was shared by many of the participants. I grew up and was a member of this church for 30 years of my life. So I was very integrated and I understand the culture and I think it can be very supportive and bonding but only if you were a part of it. If you are not, you are discouraged from associating with people that are not like you as it is not safe to do so. Intentional or not, the research is clear that Utah public school children who do not identify as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are experiencing microaggression and faith-based bullying. These experiences are impacting their friendships and feelings of belonging. Studies have shown victimized and rejected children are at risk of less frequent participation in classroom activities and lower levels of interest to succeed in school. Thereby lowering their academic achievement and process (Buhs, Ladd, and Herald, 2006; Iyer et. al., 2010). Studies have shown that being a religious minority, in a community with a religious majority, can be a barrier to friendship formation (Dupper, Forrest-Banks, & Lowry-Carusillo, 2014; Forrest-Bank, & Dupper, 2016). Through no fault of their own, children are being told they are “bad guys” or “going to hell” or can no longer be played with due to their lack of affiliation with the dominant religion. Abusive peer relations during childhood have been linked MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 27 to anxiety, loneliness, depression, and school maladaptation (Boulton & Underwood, 1992; Ladd, 1999). Negative peer relations can severely affect a child and thereby cause school disengagement, and chronic peer maltreatment (Buhs, Ladd, Herald, 2006; Iyer, Kochenderfer-Ladd, Eisenberg, & Thompson, 2010, Ladd 1999). Poor peer relations during childhood have been consistently implicated in the etiology of later deviance (Ladd, 1999). Greater attentiveness should be paid to how schools might make space for friendship (Boulton & Underwood, 1992; Healy, 2011). Further research needs to be done to find if there are lasting impacts from these microaggressions and faith-based bullying experiences in Utah. As previously stated, the greatest predictor of adult adaptation is not grades or classroom behavior, it is how well a child gets along with other children (Hartup, 1990). This research has shown that in Utah, religion can be a barrier to friendship. MICROAGGRESSIONS IN SCHOOLS WITH A DOMINANT RELIGIOUS CULTURE 28 REFERENCES Anczyk, A., & Grzymala-Moszczynska, J. (2018). 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