The ABA Journal (Debra Cassens Weiss) reports on the settlement (in which "defendants did not admit liability"):
The lead plaintiff in the [class action] suit, Kaya Hudgins, was a practicing Muslim at the time of the "Quiet Time Program," according to prior coverage by Patch and Religion News Service and an April 2024 press release. Transcendental meditation was represented as nonreligious, but the mantras that students were taught to silently repeat were in fact words that honored or referenced specific Hindu deities, the suit had alleged.
The suit also alleged that students were required to complete a "Puja" initiation ceremony that included chants recognizing powers of Hindu deities.
Here's an excerpt from Judge Matthew Kennelly's decision in Williams v. Bd. of Ed. (N.D. Ill. 2021), which had allowed a related lawsuit to go forward:
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