A Sikh family’s son will be allowed to bring his kirpan, a religiously-symbolic knife, to school in Auburn, Washington.
The state of Washington has a zero-tolerance weapons policy, but school officials say they are allowed to make exceptions, since those who practice the Sikh religion are required to wear the kirpan at all times.
Kirpan blades are often dull. They symbolize the Sikhs’ commitment to battle injustice.
There will be some restrictions in the school—the knife must be concealed under the child’s clothes.
“The knife can’t come out. It can’t be shown around. It needs to be underneath their clothing,” Auburn Assistant Superintendent of Schools Ryan Foster told King 5 News. “That allows them to express their religion without jeopardizing anyone’s feeling of safety. If there are any problems, we will take it to the family, but we don’t expect any.”
Weapons and weapon-like paraphernalia in schools is an increasingly controversial issue. Last month a California student was asked to change out of a National Rifle Association t-shirt, while a New Jersey boy was arrested for “possession of an imitation firearm in an educational setting” after bringing a toy gun to school.
Consequently, many are upset by this case, seeing it either as an unfair exception to the rules or endangerment of the other students.
The kirpan has been treated as a religious article, rather than a weapon, in similar settings. At the Vancouver Olympics, for example, despite tight security measures, Sikhs were permitted to bring kirpans since there was little evidence they had ever been used as weapons. And the Department of Homeland Security permits kirpans of certain lengths onto federal properties.
