On October 17, 2024, FFRF and a coalition filed a petition on behalf of Oklahoma families with the Oklahoma Supreme Court would block State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters’ mandate that all public schools incorporate the bible into their curricula. Additionally, the petition asks the court to stop the state from spending millions of taxpayer dollars on bibles to support the mandate.
On June 27, 2024, Ryan Walters issued a mandate that would require every public school in Oklahoma to incorporate the bible into the curriculum for grades 5-12. He requested $3 million in taxpayer money to purchase a version of the King James Bible. The edition he requested includes the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Pledge of Allegiance, and Bill of Rights.
The petition asserts that the bible-education mandate violates the Oklahoma Constitution’s religious freedom protections. This is because the government is spending public money to support religion, as well as favoring one religion over others by requiring the use of a Protestant version of the bible. Additionally, the mandate violates the Oklahoma Administrative Procedures Act and other state statutes because officials did not follow required rules for adopting new policies and for spending public money.
There are thirty-two plaintiffs, including fourteen public school parents, four public school teachers and three faith leaders. They are represented by FFRF, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the ACLU, the ACLU of Oklahoma Foundation, and Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law & Justice. FFRF Senior Counsel Samuel Grover and FFRF Legal Director Patrick Elliott are serving as co-counsel on the case.
