OKLAHOMA CITY - The American Civil Liberties Union, the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law & Justice are uniting to challenge Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters’ latest attempt to impose religion on students in the state’s public school system.
On Thursday, to promote his new “Office of Religious Liberty and Patriotism,” Superintendent Walters emailed all superintendents within the state a “Mandatory Announcement” that linked to a video entitled “Prayer for the Nation.” Additionally, the email asserted that all Oklahoma schools must play the video for all their students and send it to their parents. In the video, Walters blames the “radical left” and “woke teachers unions” for “attacking” religious liberty and then delivers a lengthy prayer supporting President-elect Donald Trump. Walters encourages students to join in his prayer.
On Friday, the coalition sent a letter to every superintendent in Oklahoma urging them not to show or disseminate Walters’ prayer video. The letter emphasizes the constitutional requirement for public schools to remain secular and warns that promoting the video to students and parents would violate both the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and Article I, Section 2 of the Oklahoma Constitution. The letter also points out that Superintendent Walters lacks the authority to require local school districts to play the video (or any other video) to their students.
“Requiring students to watch a prayer video violates students’ religious freedom, including their Establishment Clause rights,” the letter warns. “It is beyond dispute that, at a minimum, the Constitution guarantees that government may not coerce anyone to support or participate in religion or its exercise[.]”
The coalition reminds superintendents of their responsibility to protect all students’ religious freedom, regardless of their personal beliefs. By promoting a specific religious perspective, schools risk alienating students who do not share those beliefs, fostering an environment of exclusion and discrimination.
The coalition encourages parents and students to report any incidents where the video has been shown or used in schools to intake@acluok.org.
“All families and students should feel welcome in Oklahoma public schools, regardless of their faith,” said Megan Lambert, ACLU of Oklahoma legal director. “Walters' video ‘Prayer for a Nation’ subjects students to government-sponsored religion in a way that has been repeatedly ruled as unconstitutional. We are all free to exercise our religious beliefs individually, but it is never the government’s role to promote or endorse a specific religious viewpoint. At this point in our country, we must ensure our local officials do not assist anti-democratic forces in attacking our civil liberties and civil rights. And the ACLU of Oklahoma will be there, standing proudly with our partners, helping politicians remember their constitutional duties.”
Walters’ email read as follows:
We are in a dangerous time for this country. Student’s[sic] rights and freedoms regarding religious liberties are continuously under assault. The newly created Department of Religious Liberty and Patriotism will be working to thwart any attempts to disrupt our Oklahoma student’s[sic] fundamental freedoms.
In one of the first steps of the newly created department, we are requiring all of Oklahoma schools to play the attached video to all kids that are enrolled. We are also requiring that that[sic] school districts send this video to all parents as well.
Students are encouraged but not required to join me in this prayer.
“I pray for our leaders to make the right decisions,” Walters said in the video attached to the email. “I pray in particular for President Donald Trump and his team as they continue to bring about change to the country.” Walters also prays schools “continue to teach love of country to our young people, and that our students understand what makes America great.”
Walters separately announced on Thursday that he purchased more than 500 Bibles for Advanced Placement (AP) Government classrooms. In October, the coalition filed a lawsuit on behalf of 32 Oklahomans urging the Oklahoma Supreme Court to block Walters’ mandate that all public schools incorporate the bible into their curricula.
This coalition stands firm in defending the rights of every student to receive a secular education free from religious influence.