Two days after the Oklahoma Supreme Court decisively rejected what would have been the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school, the state’s top education official has declared that every public school classroom, grades 5-12, have a Christian Bible and that every teacher incorporate the religious text into their curriculum.
According to State Superintendent Ryan Walters, “Adherence to this mandate is compulsory… Immediate and strict compliance is expected.” In an interview on Friday, Walters vowed to revoke teachers’ licenses if they refuse to teach from the Bible.
Oklahoma statute grants school districts the exclusive authority to make determinations about curriculum and instructional materials. That fact hasn’t deterred Walters, whose rationale is rife with Christian nationalist talking points and other inaccuracies.
This all follows the recent passage of a law in Louisiana requiring every public school classroom to display the Ten (or rather 11) Commandments. The ACLU of Louisiana, in coordination with other national partners, has already announced a group of parents will challenge the law’s constitutionality in court.
American Atheists will do everything we can to support that effort. At the same time, we know litigation is precisely what the Christian nationalist lawmakers wanted. They said so. Why? Because it gives them an opportunity to present the matter before a sympathetic Fifth Circuit and, ultimately, the U.S. Supreme Court, which could once again overturn a longstanding precedent.
This is an all-hands-on-deck moment for those of us who care about our First Amendment rights.
That’s why we’re going to continue leading the charge against these Christian nationalist bills in every state legislature where they appear. Because as we’ve learned from antiquated policies banning blasphemy or the abortion ban trigger laws, we must work harder to stop these bills before they ever go on the books.
And we can’t just play defense. We need to continue advocating for proactive policies that will not only safeguard our constitutional rights but also expand equality for atheists and other nonreligious Americans. That’s exactly what we’ve been doing in states like Colorado, where we helped pass a first-of-its-kind healthcare transparency law, and Minnesota, where we’re going to pass a recovery options bill.
I’m relieved by the ruling in Oklahoma this week, and I’m hopeful the Louisiana law will also be rejected. But I don’t believe we can count on courts alone to defeat Christian nationalism. So we’re going to continue pursuing all avenues — from building grassroots support and defeating dangerous legislation before it becomes law to ramping up our efforts to educate judges, lawmakers, educators, and the public.
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Sincerely,
Alison Gill
Vice President, Legal & Policy
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