Thirty-two Oklahomans of differing religious backgrounds filed a lawsuit asking the state Supreme Court to block Superintendent Ryan Walters' Bible mandate.
In this article, we'll break down how we got here and what the lawsuit claims.
BACKGROUND
On June 27, State Superintendent Ryan Walters announced a memorandum that would require all Oklahoma public schools to incorporate the Bible as instruction support for grades five through 12 in a state board of education meeting.
Here's our coverage from that announcement:
In this memorandum, it states that "adherence to this mandate is compulsory... Immediate and strict compliance is expected."
On July 24, Walters issued an additional memorandum requiring schools to have physical copies of the Bible and Ten Commandments for each teacher in every classroom.
It also tells teachers how to use the Bible in classroom instruction. For example, teachers "must" teach the following:
- Focus on how biblical principles have shaped the foundational aspects of Western societies, such as the concepts of justice, human rights, and the rule of law
- Highlight key historical moments where the Bible played a role
- Explore its influence on classic and contemporary works
- Introduce students to famous artworks that depict biblical scenes or themes
The July memorandum also reemphasized that "immediate and complete implementation of these guidelines for the 2024-25 school year is required."
The two memoranda are referred to as the Bible Education Mandate throughout the lawsuit and in this article.
Further, on Sept. 26, Walters asked the State Board of Education to consider a $3 million investment in his effort to get Bibles in classrooms across the state.
Local News
Supt. Walters requests $3M to get Bibles in all Oklahoma classrooms
Walters said this is in addition to the $3 million that the board has already set aside for the fund.
THE LAWSUIT
The 32 Oklahomans included in the lawsuit are faith leaders, families of mixed religious beliefs, students and teachers.
Normally a case may have to go through lower courts before it makes it to the Oklahoma Supreme Court. The petitioners in the case went straight to the Supreme Court, citing statewide importance and a time-sensitive nature.
Respondents in the case are Ryan Walters in his official capacity, the Oklahoma State Department of Education, the Oklahoma Board of Education and its members, the Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise services and its Executive Director Rick Rose and its State Purchasing Director Amanda Otis and its Contracting Officer Brenda Hansel.
This is what the petitioners are asking the court for:
- A declaratory judgment of some sort that prohibits the OSDE's Bible Education Mandate
- Declare the Bible Education Mandate unlawful and invalid
- Require the respondents to rescind the Bible Education Mandate
- Prohibit Respondents from taking any action to enforce or in furtherance of the Bible Education Mandate, including spending any state funds on the purchase or provision of Bibles.
The petitioners cite several reasons for alleging the mandate is unlawful.
First, they argue the mandate violates the Oklahoma Administrative Procedures Act (OAPA), which requires detailed procedures to be followed to issue a rule, including a provision of notice and a comment period. They claim Walters made no attempt to follow these rules.
They also claim it violates the OAPA because it is "substantively unlawful." The Act gives individual school districts the authority to select the instructional materials that they use. OSDE and Walters have no such authority.
The lawsuit says spending $3 million on Bibles would unlawfully support an invalid rule.
The Request for Proposal for the Bibles also violates state procurement requirements because it's gerrymandered to favor two providers, the lawsuit reads.
Finally, they claim the mandate violates religious freedoms in Oklahoma's Constitution by promoting one particular religious tradition.
Each of the petitioners provided specific concerns about the mandate. Those can be read in the full lawsuit here.
One of the petitioners is a student who received a religious assignment.
We covered that story when it happened:
We asked Walters for comment and he provided this statement:
Oklahomans will not be bullied by out-of-state, radical leftists who hate the principles our nation was founded upon. The simple fact is that understanding how the Bible has impacted our nation, in its proper historical and literary context, was the norm in America until the 1960s and its removal has coincided with a precipitous decline in American schools. It is not possible for our students to understand American history and culture without understanding the Biblical principles from which they came, so I am proud to bring back the Bible to every classroom in Oklahoma. I will never back down to the woke mob, no matter what tactic they use to try to intimidate Oklahomans.
This story was originally published by Jennifer Maupin at Scripps News Tulsa.