A Florida activist is raising money to send Texas schools “In God We Trust” signs — in Arabic.
The effort comes as schools across the state are posting signs with the national motto to comply with a law Texas Republicans passed last year in an attempt to enforce conservative, Christian values in public schools. Senate Bill 797, authored by Mineola Sen. Bryan Hughes, requires schools to display the posters in a “conspicuous place” if they are donated.
On Sunday, Chaz Stevens launched a GoFundMe campaign, “Messing with Texas,” to raise $10,000 for the posters with the motto in Arabic.
“We really could use your help in our quest to battle Texas’ latest law — ‘In God We Trust’ signs in public schools,” Stevens said in a tweet. “Our project will send hundreds of these posters across the Lone Star state.”
Stevens is the founder of the Mount Jab Church of Mars, a Florida-based group that advocates for the separation of church and state.
In response, Hughes quoted former President Ronald Reagan in a tweet: “Our national motto — ‘In God We Trust’ — was not chosen lightly. It reflects a basic recognition that there is a divine authority in the universe to which this nation owes homage.”
We really could use your help in our quest to battle Texas' latest law - "In God We Trust" signs in public schools.
Our project will send hundreds of these posters across the Lone Star state.
We really need your help. Stand with us today!https://t.co/MwoIT6RVNJ pic.twitter.com/pkDi72Fk9F — Chaz Stevens (@TheTweetOfJab) August 23, 2022
Last week, a Christian conservative wireless provider, Patriot Mobile, donated “In God We Trust” posters to Southlake schools. The Grapevine-based company is tied to a political action committee that spent big money to support conservatives in North Texas school board races this year, and was a sponsor of the state Republican convention in June.
“Patriot Mobile is honored to donate these posters to CISD, and we are very excited to see them amongst all of our schools,” Scott Coburn, chief marketing officer for the company, said in a Facebook post, noting the company has donated similar posters to other area districts, including Keller ISD.
Carroll ISD, a mostly white, affluent suburb, has been ground zero for the ongoing political fights around how schools grapple with diversity and inclusion.
Following the donation last week, the Southlake Anti-Racism Coalition, or SARC, released a statement opposing the law, The Texas Tribune reported.
“SARC is disturbed by the precedent displaying these posters in every school will set and the chilling effect this blatant intrusion of religion in what should be a secular public institution will have on the student body, especially those who do not practice the dominant Christian faith,” the statement read.
The DMN Education Lab deepens the coverage and conversation about urgent education issues critical to the future of North Texas.
The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative, with support from The Beck Group, Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Garrett and Cecilia Boone, The Meadows Foundation, The Murrell Foundation, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University, Todd A. Williams Family Foundation and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control of the Education Lab’s journalism.
mrbeefy on August 25th, 2022 at 02:53 UTC »
Can't wait to see what The Church of Satan is gonna send!
kt234 on August 24th, 2022 at 22:02 UTC »
Does the law say anything about font size or how much the color of the text must differ from the background characters? How about language? I love malicious compliance.
anaveragedave on August 24th, 2022 at 20:15 UTC »
Bah, meant to reply to the redditor asking for a copypaste. oh well, here you all are:
A Florida activist is raising money to send Texas schools “In God We Trust” signs — in Arabic.
The effort comes as schools across the state are posting signs with the national motto to comply with a law Texas Republicans passed last year in an attempt to enforce conservative, Christian values in public schools. Senate Bill 797, authored by Mineola Sen. Bryan Hughes, requires schools to display the posters in a “conspicuous place” if they are donated.
“We really could use your help in our quest to battle Texas’ latest law — ‘In God We Trust’ signs in public schools,” Stevens said in a tweet. “Our project will send hundreds of these posters across the Lone Star state.”
Stevens is the founder of the Mount Jab Church of Mars, a Florida-based group that advocates for the separation of church and state.
In response, Hughes quoted former President Ronald Reagan in a tweet: “Our national motto — ‘In God We Trust’ — was not chosen lightly. It reflects a basic recognition that there is a divine authority in the universe to which this nation owes homage.”
Last week, a Christian conservative wireless provider, Patriot Mobile, donated “In God We Trust” posters to Southlake schools. The Grapevine-based company is tied to a political action committee that spent big money to support conservatives in North Texas school board races this year, and was a sponsor of the state Republican convention in June.
“Patriot Mobile is honored to donate these posters to CISD, and we are very excited to see them amongst all of our schools,” Scott Coburn, chief marketing officer for the company, said in a Facebook post, noting the company has donated similar posters to other area districts, including Keller ISD.
Carroll ISD, a mostly white, affluent suburb, has been ground zero for the ongoing political fights around how schools grapple with diversity and inclusion.
Following the donation last week, the Southlake Anti-Racism Coalition, or SARC, released a statement opposing the law, The Texas Tribune reported.
“SARC is disturbed by the precedent displaying these posters in every school will set and the chilling effect this blatant intrusion of religion in what should be a secular public institution will have on the student body, especially those who do not practice the dominant Christian faith,” the statement read.