One Georgia lawmaker’s push to protect Christmas trees and “happy holidays” greetings in public schools statewide cleared its first hurdle Tuesday with unanimous approval from the Senate Education and Youth Committee.
Questions remained, however, about whether Senate Bill 283 could withstand a legal challenge if it ever became law.
The bill would allow local school systems to educate students about the history of “traditional winter celebrations” and let students and staff offer “traditional greetings” such as “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Hanukkah.”
Displays involving such symbols as a menorah, Christmas tree or Nativity scenes would be protected as long as they included more than one religion or one religion and at least one secular scene or symbol. Displays promoting adherence to any particular religious belief would be forbidden.
“It really doesn’t allow anything that’s not allowed now,” said state Sen. Mike Dugan, R-Carrollton, the bill’s sponsor. “All it’s doing is providing clarity for school systems that don’t know.”
Not everyone is sure how clear SB 283 is. The bill doesn’t define what it means by secular symbol. And its line about allowing a display with a secular symbol and one religion left some wondering how that avoids the bill’s ban on promoting any particular religious belief.
“I think it will end up in court,” said Angela Palm with the Georgia School Boards Association.
With regular committee passage Tuesday, the bill now heads to the Senate Rules Committee for consideration about whether it will go before the full Senate for a vote.
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