Texas public schools are required to display “In God We Trust” signs — if they are privately donated.
Senate Bill 797, passed by Texas’s 87th Legislature, requires public schools to “display in a conspicuous place in each building of the school or institution a durable poster or framed copy of the United States national motto, ‘In God We Trust.'”
<mediadc-iframe data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1660828944514,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"00000162-07c3-d172-a563-4feb224a0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1660828944514,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"00000162-07c3-d172-a563-4feb224a0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"iFrameEmbedCode":"","_id":"00000182-b0f8-d0cd-a7af-bdfa29aa0000","_type":"00000161-b425-d761-a563-f7e77e270000"}”>iFrame Object
‘KEEPING OUR CHILDREN SAFE’: PENNSYLVANIA GOVERNOR BANS CONVERSION THERAPY
The requirement is conditional, however. The signs must be donated or bought from private donors, include the U.S. flag and center it under the motto, include the state flag, and display no other words, pictures, or language.
The Yellow Rose of Texas Republican Women are donating copies to every instructional facility in Texas’s Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District. In a statement, CFISD called the donations “generous.”
“We just felt like it was a great opportunity to display our national motto in our public schools,” Texas Rep. Tom Oliverson, who co-authored the bill, told KHOU. “I think it reminds us that we are a nation that believes in a power greater than ourselves.”
Not everyone is supportive of the signs being displayed, however.
“It’s a disgrace. These groups are hijacking our public education,” parent Aly Fitzpatrick said. “The point is we are America, and not everyone does believe in the same God, and telling children that is very confusing.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The law builds upon a bill passed in 2003 that allowed schools to display the motto.
“The national motto asserts our collective trust in a sovereign God,” state Sen. Bryan Hughes said. “Not only is a school allowed to display that statement of faith, but a school must do so if there is no cost associated with the display.”
