Kentucky has passed a bill to protect the right to religious expression in public schools.
The impetus for the bill was a censorship issue that occurred around Christmastime. School officials reportedly censored the scene from “A Charlie Brown Christmas” in which the character Linus talks about the true meaning of Christmas. The school in Johnson County censored the scene from the school’s Christmas production, according to OneNewsNow.com.
“A Charlie Brown Christmas” was created by Charles Schultz who reportedly insisted on including the scene in which Linus reads the Christmas story from the book of Luke in the original airing of the film in 1965.
Both the Kentucky House and Senate overwhelmingly passed the religious freedom bill. It now goes to the desk of Governor Matt Bevin, who is known for his Christian faith.
Some legislators claimed that the religious freedom bill was not necessary since such rights are already protected in the First Amendment, but Alliance Defending Freedom attorney Matt Sharp noted that the recent censorship issue proves that the bill is needed.
Sharp said, “Even though the Supreme Court has repeatedly held that schools can include the Bible and other religious stories and elements as part of the educational process, there was confusion in Kentucky over this play. What this law does is reaffirm what the Constitution says.”
Lawmakers in Missouri and Indiana are working on similar measures to protect the religious and free speech rights of public school students.