Lege: Here Comes the Culture War
The culture war begins as conservative lawmakers file "religious freedom" bills
By Mary Tuma, Fri., Jan. 23, 2015
It wouldn't be another Texas legislative session without a heaping dose of right-wing fear-mongering, bat-shittery, and the perpetual effort to overtly blur the lines of separation of church and state.
Here's what's in store so far: HB 138 by Rep. Dan Flynn, R-Canton, would prevent school districts from prohibiting posting a copy of the Ten Commandments in a classroom. With the same flavor, House Concurrent Resolution 30 by state Rep. Phil Stephenson, R-Wharton, supports prayers, including the use of the word "God," at public gatherings, and displays of the Ten Commandments in public educational institutions and other government buildings. "It is clear from their writings that our founding fathers believed devotedly that there was a God, and throughout American history all three branches of government have acknowledged the strong role of religion in our nation's heritage and in the lives of its citizens," Stephenson's resolution reads. (The bill authors must have missed the 1980 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Stone v. Graham that explicitly deemed displaying the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms unconstitutional.)
Dredging up the anti-Muslim hysteria of the past two sessions, Flynn and Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano, have offered up legislation barring the application of foreign laws (i.e. Sharia Law) to either state courts or marriage cases, despite the fact that the First Amendment and the Texas Constitution already ban imposing religious law as civil law. Lacking evidence to show Sharia is an actual creeping threat, previous attempts to pass the law have failed to materialize.
And then there's not one but two proposed constitutional amendments attempting to grant the state a "license to discriminate" – on religious grounds – against individuals, including members of the LGBT community. SJR 10 by Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels, and HJR 55 by Rep. Jason Villalba, R-Dallas, seek to protect the "free exercise of religion" by allowing Texas businesses to turn away LGBT customers and fire gay employees if their act is "motivated by a sincerely held religious belief" – the bill could effectively undermine local non-discrimination ordinances. (Once again, a redundancy, as freedom of religion is protected by both the U.S. and Texas constitutions.) A similar bill authored by Campbell last session died in committee after unlikely opposition from an anti-choice group that worried abortion could be construed as a "religious right" under the bill language.
Finally, Rep. Richard Raymond, D-Laredo, proposes the issuance of "In God We Trust" specialty license plates, filling a non-existent void in the religious plate market: "God Bless America" and "God Bless Texas" plates are already sold by the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.
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