Alabama Public Schools Seeking to Add ‘In God We Trust’ Displays

Alabama public school officials are seeking to add “In God We Trust” displays to school property in a push to bring God back into the classroom.

Blount County Schools Superintendent Rodney Green told AL.com his school district is on track to be one of the first to add the displays on public property since a law passed by the Alabama legislature in February went into effect last month.

Green said that the school board hopes to draft a policy on the matter within the month, but they are contacting an attorney for guidance before the policy is put into place.

“You would think that something that passes the Legislature won’t be challenged in the courtroom but we all know that it can and probably will,” said Green, who oversees a district which is home to more than 7,800 students in 17 schools.

Other school districts and government officials in the state are expected to follow suit since the legislation went into effect in July, but the legislation has drawn criticism from atheist organizations who say the law is “constant push for theocracy.”

“It’s a tsunami of Christian national laws in our country right now,” Annie Laurie Gaylord, co-president of the Freedom from Religion Foundation said in a statement.“The upcoming election will say a lot about the direction of our nation. With the Republicans in charge of Congress and so many of these states, we are seeing a constant push for theocracy.”

Alabama State Rep. David Standridge (R-Hayden), who sponsored the initial legislation that allowed public entities to display the phrase “In God We Trust,” tweeted Friday that “political correctness has gone too far” if schools are too “afraid to display our national motto” without fear of legal action:

This article talks about the “In God We Trust” Act that I had the honor to sponsor. Political correctness has gone too far if our schools are afraid to display our national motto. https://t.co/u2N54iaJUX

— Rep David Standridge (@JudgeStandridge) August 10, 2018

Despite the pushback from atheist groups, other state legislatures have passed laws allowing for “In God We Trust” to be displayed in schools and public buildings. Arkansas public schools rolled out “In God We Trust” posters in November after the state passed legislation in August allowing the motto to be displayed on school property.

Tennessee lawmakers also passed a law in March requiring public schools to post the national motto in a visible area of school property.