School Prayer Archives - American Atheists

Kentucky Residents: Oppose Religious Coercion in Public Schools!

American Atheists — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 15:40:00 +0000

Kentucky lawmakers are close to passing a controversial bill (HB 46), which would require every public school to prominently display “In God We Trust” posters. Mandating these posters unfairly excludes atheists, and religious coercion has no place in our public schools. Please tell the Senate Committee on Education to oppose this bad bill! These Senators are holding a hearing on HB 46 TODAY, and your emails could make all the difference. HB 46 will result in bullying and harassment of students with minority beliefs. According to a study on religion in America by the Pew Research Center, 22% of Kentucky residents are religiously unaffiliated. Younger Americans are even more likely to be nonreligious. Kentucky lawmakers should not stigmatize these students by promoting religious messages in school! National motto display bills like HB 46 are being pushed by special interests as part of Project Blitz, an effort by Christian nationalists to rewrite American history so that it favors their agenda. These bills aim to undermine the separation of religion and government and spread a false narrative that America was founded as a Christian nation. We cannot allow special interests to use our children to achieve their political goals. Please take a moment and ask the Senate Committee on Education to oppose this bill.

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Keep coercive prayer out of public schools!

American Atheists — Mon, 07 May 2018 15:58:44 +0000

Baton Rouge, LA—On Tuesday, the Louisiana House Committee on Education will hear two bills which would allow teachers and students to pray together in public schools. To be clear, students can already engage in voluntary, nondisruptive prayer in school. However, these bills go a step further and would allow teachers to improperly join the students and even lead prayers.This law would be unconstitutional and would violate the rights of students to be free from coercive religious activity in public school. Each of these bills already passed the Louisiana Senate unanimously, and if they pass the Committee on Education, they are likely to become law. It is essential that we speak out against them now. Instead of spending their time addressing the real challenges facing the people of Louisiana, lawmakers are pandering to their Christian base by pushing forward bills they know will be struck down as unconstitutional. In the process, however, they will waste millions of dollars in taxpayer money to defend the indefensible. The Supreme Court and lower courts have repeatedly made clear that allowing public school teachers to engage in prayer with students is a violation of the First Amendment. We need to stop these bills at the committee level. Help us stand up for the rights of all students. Please contact the Louisiana Committee on Education now and tell them you oppose SB 253 and SB 512!

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Tell Louisiana Lawmakers Not to Allow Public School Teachers to Pray with Students

American Atheists — Mon, 30 Apr 2018 19:03:41 +0000

Baton Rouge, LA—Lawmakers in Louisiana are rushing to pass several unconstitutional bills which would allow teachers and students to pray together in public schools. Students can already engage in voluntary, nondisruptive prayer in school. However, these bills would allow teachers to improperly join them, violating the constitutional rights of students to be free from religious coercion. Each of these bills already passed the Louisiana Senate unanimously, so it is essential that we speak out against them now! Instead of spending their time addressing the real challenges facing the people of Louisiana, lawmakers are pandering to their Christian base by pushing bills they know will be struck down as unconstitutional. In the process, however, they will waste millions of dollars in taxpayer money to defend the indefensible. The Supreme Court and lower courts have repeatedly made clear that allowing public school teachers to engage in prayer with students is a violation of the First Amendment. We need to put the brakes on these bills immediately! Please help us stand up to religious coercion against students and tell your Louisiana representatives that you oppose SB 253 and SB 512!

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