The Center for Inquiry (CFI) is concerned about two dangerous and theocratic bills in Louisiana, and we need our supporters in the Bayou State to help defeat them.
The first, HB 334 / SB 123, would allow public school districts to hire, or accept as volunteers, religious chaplains for student service roles. These roles include serving as students’ guidance counselors and social workers.
CFI’s Office of Public Policy has lobbied against similar school chaplain bills in numerous states this year. As we often point out, they violate the separation of church and state by injecting religious ideology and coercion into public schools. Under these bills, students are left subject to proselytizing and undue influence by religious authority figures. Moreover, chaplains are not trained or qualified to deal with potentially sensitive student matters, so these arrangements will not serve students’ actual needs.
The Louisiana House of Representatives version of this legislation (HB 334) has already passed in the House and is currently before the Senate’s Committee on Education; the Senate version (SB 123) passed in the Senate and was just approved by the House Committee on Education this Wednesday, April 24.
The second concerning piece of legislation, HB 71, would require every public school in Louisiana to prominently display the Ten Commandments in every classroom.
This heavy-handed approach violates the separation of church and state just as badly as the school chaplain bill. The Ten Commandments are a religious document. They reflect the religious beliefs of some people, while failing to reflect the values of many others. Imposing the Ten Commandments on schoolchildren usurps the rights of parents to direct their children’s religious upbringing.
HB 71 has already passed in the House and is currently before the Senate Committee on Education.
We need every one of CFI’s supporters in Louisiana to speak out against these bills. Please contact your Senator and Representative today and urge them to vote against both pieces of legislation.
