UPDATED: It is important to note that opposition to this resolution was bipartisan. Three Democrats (Rick Agosto, Lawrence Allen, Mavis Knight) and three Republicans (Bob Craig, Pat Hardy, Geraldine “Tincy” Miller) voted to reject the resolution. But the board’s far-right members voted, as they almost always do, as a bloc to pass it. With two […]
Religious Freedom
The Texas Freedom Network supports the constitutional guarantee of the separation of church and state, which protects the right of all Americans to practice the faith of their choice, or none at all, free of government interference.
Unfortunately, efforts to knock down that wall are a constant in Texas. Politicians and extremists continually work to impose their views on others, especially around issues like abortion, access to contraception, and LGBTQIA+ equality. And in a distortion of the principle of religious freedom, far-right groups have supported legislative efforts to allow people to use religion as an excuse to ignore laws they might not like and even as a weapon to discriminate against others.
Resources
- Prayer in Public Schools: A Primer (2001 report)
- The Texas Faith-Based Initiative (2002 report)
- The National Day of Prayer Task Force: Turning a Day of Faith into a Rally for the Christian Right (2005 Report)
- A Report on The National Council on Bible Curriculum in Public Schools (2005 report)
- Reading, Writing & Religion: Teaching the Bible in Texas Public Schools (2006 report)
- Reading, Writing & Religion II (2013 report)
- Can This Class Be Saved? The ‘Hobby Lobby’ Public School Bible Curriculum (2014 report)
- Turning Texas Public Schools into Sunday Schools? A Review of the State’s Proposed K-5 Reading Curriculum (2024 report) | Executive Summary
A Proactive Response to Anti-Muslim Bigotry
As the Texas State Board of Education prepares to join in on the anti-Muslim hostility roiling the country, it is worth noting that many interfaith groups are stepping up their efforts to correct the misinformation and slander circulating about Islam. There are a number of interfaith endeavors scheduled in central Texas in the coming days […]
Texas Ed Board Targets ‘Pro-Islamic Bias’
Need more evidence that Texas State Board of Education members are more interested in promoting “culture war” politics than ensuring schoolchildren get a quality education? Just months after politicizing new social studies curriculum standards for public schools, the state board next week will consider a resolution criticizing publishers for allegedly promoting anti-Christian and pro-Islamic bias […]
Religious Freedom and America
Some critics have continually and absurdly attacked President Obama for supposedly not calling out the murderers behind the 9/11 terrorist attacks, for supposedly not talking about his Christian faith (if, indeed, they even believe he’s a Christian) and for supposedly being too pro-Muslim (whatever that means). So we thought this response by President Obama to […]
Freedom for Some, But Not All?
In the growing category of religious-right hypocrisy, read this recent statement from the Southern Baptist Convention’s Richard Land regarding the proposed Muslim community center near Ground Zero in New York: “I take a back seat to no one when it comes to religious freedom and religious belief and the right to express that belief, even […]
