An FFRF complaint over religious plaques at two North Texas schools has many Texans in a theocratic tizzy. Staff Attorney Sam Grover wrote the Midlothian Independent School District in June after receiving a complaint about the plaques.
A plaque at Mountain Peak Elementary says: āDedicated in the Year of our Lord 1997 to the education of Godās children and to their faithful teachers in the name of the Holy Christian Church. Soli Deo Gloria [Glory to God alone].ā
A similar plaque is at Longbranch Elementary. The plaques were part of the buildingsā dedications 17 years ago.
In response, school district attorney John Hardy promised FFRF that the plaque would be removed from Mountain Peak Elementary. Both plaques were then covered with duct tape. But in late August, a vandal removed the coverings.
Nearly 100 people attended a rally at the administration building to protest removal of the plaques. NBC-5 Fort Worth interviewed one protester, Lisa Huski, who said her daughter carries a bible to class: āItās not about a plaque. Itās about God being in our childrenās schools. Itās about us standing up for the fact that Godās in our school.ā On Aug. 28, Superintendent Jerome Stewart announced the plaques would remain uncovered while the district seeks legal advice. Stewart earlier had said theyād have to be replaced because of their āquestionable constitutional nature.ā
NBC-5 reported that the Liberty Institute in Plano, infamous for defending the bible banners used by cheerleaders in Kountze, Texas, is involved. Liberty Instituteās Hiram Sasser claimed āthe school district created a limited public forum for plaques relating to the topic of the building dedication,ā which he further claimed cannot be censored āsimply because of its religious viewpoint.ā
āThe Establishment Clause of the First Amendment stands for the principle that the state must remain separate from church, from religion,ā FFRF attorney Grover said. āThis is a public school district, so it represents the state, and therefore it canāt take a position on religion.ā
FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor pointed to more than 65 years of firm Supreme Court decisions protecting chidren from religious proselytizing and rituals in public schools.
āWhat makes this case especially egregious is the fact that these religious plaques hang on elementary schools where a captive audience of very young students are being sent a theocratic message. What a lesson in abuse of authority and our secular school system,ā Gaylor added.
FFRFās office has fielded a number of crank calls from Texas and reported one threat to police.