ACLU: Bibles Used As Weapons At Local Schools

PLANO (CBS 11 / TXA 21)
Reporting - Jay Gormley
Oct 8, 2009 9:57 pm US/Central



A report issued Thursday by the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas claims that Gideon Bibles which were passed out in schools were used to harass and hurt several students in Plano and Frisco. The ACLU says its investigation was launched in May after numerous complaints. The report focuses on ten school districts throughout the state where Bibles were handed out to students by the Gideons International. According to the ACLU, students at Vines High School in Plano were given so many Bibles that they threw them at one another, sold them, tore them up and used the pages to roll a marijuana joint.

The report alleges that students at Frankford Middle School in Plano harassed a Jewish classmate with the Bibles before tossing them at the boy. The ACLU is pressing to end the distribution of Bibles in Texas public schools. "If the literature is handed out in such a way to make the students believe that school has endorsed or is blessing the material," said the ACLU's Anne Shuttee, "it raises questions of the establishment clause of the separation of church and state."

Advocates for religious freedom argue that the practice of passing out religius material in public places is protected by the Constitution. "My concern is that the ACLU used to stand for free speech," said Hiram Sasser of the Liberty Legal Institute, "but now they're standing for censorship and they're trying to add the bible to their banned-books list."

Liberty Legal Institute is a conservative group headquartered in Plano that is frequently involved in high-profile cases involving Constitutional law, especially in matters of religious freedom. It is currently involved in the case of a Christian cross in the Mojave Desert, which the U.S. Supreme Court is considering. CBS 11 contacted both the Plano and Frisco school districts. Both are aware of the ACLU's findings. School district representatives say they were not prepared to issue a response today, but a statement could come from both districts by Friday.

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