Tennessee lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a bill this week that will require all schools in the state to display “In God We Trust” in some sort of “prominent location,” such as “a school entry way, cafeteria, or common area where students are likely to see” it.
After it passed unanimously in the state Senate two weeks ago, the House approved the bill Monday 81-8, with two lawmakers voting “Present and not voting.” It will immediately become law once signed by Gov. Bill Haslam (R).
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Susan Lynn (R), explained why she thought it was important. “Our national motto is on our money. It’s on our license plates. It’s part of our national anthem,” Lynn told The Tennessean, referring to the seldom-sung fourth verse. “Our national motto and founding documents are the cornerstone of freedom and we should teach our children about these things.”
But “In God We Trust” has only been the national motto since 1956. Congress changed it during the Cold War specifically as a rejection of the Soviet Union’s state atheism. It replaced the original motto, “E pluribus unum” (Out of Many One). Mirroring the 13 stars, arrows, olives, and leaves found on the Great Seal of the United States that symbolize the 13 original colonies, “E pluribus unum” has 13 letters, while “In God We Trust” only has 12. (Sorry, Rhode Island.)
Tennessee is not the only state to require the motto to be posted in schools and their classrooms. Colorado, Mississippi, Virginia, and Pennsylvania have all passed either laws requiring schools to display the motto or resolutions encouraging as much. 2018 is seeing a new wave of states considering such legislation. Arkansas has already passed a law placing “In God We Trust” posters in all classrooms and libraries and similar bills are pending in Florida, South Carolina, Oklahoma, and Wyoming.
Florida’s bill was sponsored by state Rep. Kimberly Daniels (D), who said in the wake of the Parkland school shooting, “When we remove God, we remove hope.”
Mississippi also considered a bill in January requiring teachers to recite the Ten Commandments every morning, but it died in committee.
Though many have challenged the motto’s placement in government buildings, on money, and on license plates, courts have consistently held that it does not constitute an unconstitutional establishment of religion. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit wrote in a 1970 case, “Its use is of patriotic or ceremonial character and bears no true resemblance to a governmental sponsorship of a religious exercise.” The Supreme Court has similarly ruled that the government can recognize God in acts of “ceremonial deism.”
So far, the courts have not addressed questions as to which god the motto recognizes.