It was an unspoken thing when I was in high school in the late 90's. I let loose the occasional conservative opinion, and everyone would go white as a sheet. I was never openly punished, but my teachers made it very clear my thoughts weren't welcome in their classrooms. Tried to let my parents know what was going on, but they wouldn't or couldn't care.

They do tend to believe their own bullshit.

Members? No. But no one's going to keep you from attending church functions regularly. You don't even have to go on Sunday, necessarily.

Not if you're straight with them.