Tag Archives: separation of church and state

Christianist extremists have successfully rewritten American history. Here’s just a few of the textbook changes approved by the Texas State Board of Education. -The Board removed Thomas Jefferson from the Texas curriculum’s world history standards on Enlightenment thinking, “replacing him with religious right icon John Calvin.” -“Teachers in Texas will be required to cover the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation’s …

The Texas State Board of Education is easily the most influential group in the nation when it comes to the subjects studied in public schools. Their recommendations directly affect the make-up of the textbooks sold to school systems all over the country. Naturally, therefore, Christianists and assorted wingnuts fiercely lobby the TSBOE, including from within, to ensure that American kids …

The Family Policy Council of Washington state, stinging from their R-71 defeat, says that any legal basis for separation of church and state is a myth. And it’s perfectly fine to make laws based on the Bible. Transcript via Lurleen: No, the phrase “separation of church and state” does not appear anywhere in the United States or Washington State constitutions. …

JMG reader Chris tips us to the news that a federal court has ruled against South Carolina’s proposed “I Believe” license plate, calling it a violation of separation of church and state. In a summary judgment ruling, U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie said the plate was based on a discriminatory law. “Such a law amounts to state endorsement not …

Since being told they could no longer use scripture-laden banners on the field, the cheerleaders at Lakeview-Fort Olglethorpe High School in northern Georgia have become local martyrs. Via Christianist site OneNewsNow: Community members have showed their overwhelming support for the cheerleaders who have since become media celebrities. A local youth pastor, Brad Scott, started a facebook page in their support …

Cheerleaders at a public high school near Chattanooga, Tennessee are under fire for refusing to stop using giant scripture-loaded signs for the football players to crash through upon entering the field. Christianists, ignoring the Constitution, are screaming “oppression!” after the school district said the signs cannot be used. Fort Oglethorpe Mayor Ronnie Cobb vehemently disagrees with the ban and said …

A law requiring the offering of Bible education in Texas public schools is about to go into effect. Books are a common sight in classrooms around the nation, but the Bible is one book that is not. Come this fall, a Texas law says all public schools must offer information relating to the Bible in their curriculum. “By the end …

Christianists in Texas are trying to create a history curriculum for public schools that says the United States would not exist were it not for the divine intervention of God. Members of a panel of experts appointed by the [Texas school] board to revise the state’s history curriculum, who include a Christian fundamentalist preacher who says he is fighting a …

Andres Duque at Blabbeando has translated an interview with Ruben Diaz, Jr., the Bronx president and son of New York Homophobe #1, state Sen. Ruben Diaz, the man credited with putting a stop to marriage equality. Junior says he loves his father, but believes in the separation of church and state. Diaz Sr.: “I am the church AND the state. …

Mike Tidmus points us to this WCBS story in which NY state Sen. Ruben Diaz promises to use the tax-exempt pulpits of his followers to campaign for the defeat of politicians supporting of marriage equality. Sen. Diaz warned the governor that, even though Latinos traditionally vote Democrat, this is not the time to take their votes for granted. “If we …

Florida Gov. Charlie “Closet Case” Crist says he will approve a new state license plate with an image of Jesus and a cross, despite complaints from the ACLU that the plate violates the separation of church and state. Crist: “If people don’t want one they don’t have to buy one. What does it say, in ‘God we Trust’ on every …

According to a new survey, the number of Americans that say they have “no religion” has almost doubled over the last 20 years to 15%. While the survey doesn’t identify these people as atheists, the unchurched in America now far outnumber all non-Christian sects combined. So many Americans claim no religion at all (15%, up from 8% in 1990), that …

Steven Greenstreet of the American News Project reports on the investigation into the Mormon Church and their financial involvement in Yes On 8. From his email to me: Mormon leaders broadcast an hour long training video via satellite to hundreds of churches in 5 states in the weeks leading up to the election. While only 4 minutes of the video …

The Freedom From Religion Foundation has filed a federal lawsuit to stop prayers from being offered at Barack Obama’s inauguration. Among those being served with the suit are Rick Warren and Joseph Lowery. The Madison-based foundation, its co-presidents Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor and several of its members are among the 29 co-plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit, Newdow vs. …

Welcome news. For the first time in a dozen years, a majority of Americans believe that churches and religious institutions should “keep out” of politics, according to the annual Pew Religion and Public Life Survey. It’s the highest level of public concern with faith’s effect on politics since Pew began asking the question in 1996. The rise in Americans’ desire …

An atheist group in Connecticut is drawing flak for their “Imagine No Religion” holiday display in front of Rockford’s town hall. The three-sided sign uses an image of the World Trade Center to suggest that to world would be a safer place without religion. (Uh, amen to THAT.) According to city officials, the Connecticut Valley Atheists’ permit request was for …