Missouri Governor Jay Nixon, a Democrat, recently signed a bill that aims at protecting students’ freedom of religious expression at public schools. The Missouri Student Religious Liberties Act signed on July 2nd says students cannot be treated unfairly for expressing their religious views in class assignments, homework as well as artwork and those projects must be graded as per regular academic standards. According to the new legislation, students will be allowed to pray at school and wear clothes and accessories that display religion.
“Students may express their beliefs about religion in homework, artwork, and other written and oral assignments free from discrimination based on the religious content of their submissions… Students in public schools may pray or engage in religious activities or religious expression before, during and after the school day in the same manner and to the same extent that students may engage in non-religious activities or expression… Students in public schools may wear clothing, accessories and jewelry that display religious messages or religious symbols in the same manner and to the same extent that other types of clothing, accessories and jewelry that display messages or symbols are permitted,” read the bill.
Republican Elijah Haahr sponsored the bill that was passed with an overwhelming majority in the House and Senate. While the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education refused to take any particular stand on the bill, the American Civil Liberties Union said its passage was unnecessary.
Susan Goldammer, an attorney with the Missouri School Boards Association, “The intent, I suspect, was to allow for more freedom of speech in student graduation speeches, although it does not come right out and say this. The focus seems to be that we can’t discriminate against a student’s voluntary expression of religious viewpoint in those speeches.”
However, Goldammer also said that the law could result in lesser opportunities for students to express their religious views.
“One of my concerns is that the end result will be that we will allow kids to speak at the events less, because the district doesn’t have as much ability to screen the content of the speech,” she said.
Haahr, of course, referred to the signing of the bill as an important victory for religious freedom in Missouri. The bill passed last week is a lot like the one that was signed into law in Mississippi in 2013.
“This is a great victory for children and families who want to see their religious freedoms protected in all public places including our schools. I want to thank Governor Nixon for signing this important protection into law and applaud my colleagues in the legislature who came together to give this idea overwhelming support,” said Haahr.
With Nixon’s signature, the bill is set to become law on August 28th.
