Republicans pushing Christianity into public schools are hitting resistance -- even in red states

Source: Politico

09/04/2024 05:00 AM EDT


Florida now allows chaplains in public schools. Oklahoma and Texas are looking to infuse Bible lessons into curricula. And Louisiana wants to set up Ten Commandments displays in classrooms. But these efforts to push Christianity into public schools are hitting a wall of hostility in conservative-led states, including lawsuits, protests and resistance from local officials.

The clash of religion, politics and local control represents an unusual challenge for a spreading education policy model led by influential conservative leaders. And it’s sparking a legal fight over the separation of church and state that could end up before the conservative-controlled Supreme Court.

Republican officials including Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Oklahoma state school Superintendent Ryan Walters are welcoming legal challenges, defending their policies and demanding local schools fall in line. Even former President Donald Trump has offered support for posting the Ten Commandments in public schools.

But a diverse range of opponents — including local school officials, civil rights organizations and the Satanic Temple — hope to stymie these initiatives. “What we’re trying to do, honestly, is protect the religious freedoms of all of our students … from being improperly indoctrinated by teachers or by schools,” said Rob Miller, superintendent of the Bixby Public Schools district near Tulsa, Oklahoma, who is defying orders from Walters to incorporate the Bible and Ten Commandments into school curriculum. “There’s enough court precedent and historical evidence to show that the separation of church and state has worked well for quite a long time.”


Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2024/09/04/republicans-religion-schools-resistance-00177181