As this is Pollinator Week, here's a limited-focus portrait of an American painted lady butterfly
(Vanessa virginiensis) on a basket-flower (Plectocephalus americanus)
at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center on June 13th.
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The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees, among other things, that the government won't prevent Americans from practicing their religion. The same amendment blocks the government from establishing a particular religion—and that's why a new law in Louisiana must be declared unconstitutional. As the Associated Press reported on June 20:
Louisiana has become the first state to require that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom, the latest move from a GOP-dominated Legislature pushing a conservative agenda under a new governor.
The legislation that Republican Gov. Jeff Landry signed into law on Wednesday requires a poster-sized display of the Ten Commandments in “large, easily readable font” in all public classrooms, from kindergarten to state-funded universities.
The United States already has plenty of trouble with ideologues trying to force people to say and do things they don't believe in. This is yet another such attempt. Just as I don't want the secular religion of DEI (discrimination, exclusion, injustice) pushed on kids in our schools, I don't want traditional religious precepts pushed on them either.
Lawsuits challenging the Louisiana law are bound to follow soon. I hope courts will quickly overturn it. Similarly, I want courts to recognize DEI for the secular religion it is, and also enjoin the people in charge of our public schools from promoting that, too.
© 2024 Steven Schwartzman
