MONTGOMERY, Alabama (AP) — Alabama lawmakers on Thursday approved a number of bills that expand the use of Christian textbooks in public schools and limit the protections of LGBTQ+ students.
The three bills led to hours of debate in the Republican-controlled Alabama House on Thursday. The bill was passed by an overwhelming majority — mandating the Ten Commandments labeling in public schools, banning drug shows, and allowing teachers to display pride flags, promote formal sexuality debate, and allow pastors to volunteer as school counselors.
House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter described the bill as “common sense,” and denounced the legislation as “a waste of taxpayer money” by members of the Democratic Caucus “not reducing egg costs.”
The law is part of a widespread effort in conservative states to regulate how schools deal with social issues; President Donald Trump defended it.
According to the Associated Press, Alabama has joined at least 20 states in 2025, considering a law requiring display of 10 commandments in public schools and state buildings. Analysis using the plural form of invoice tracking software.
Rep. Mark Guidley, sponsoring Alabama’s 10 Commandments Bill, said he didn’t want to promote certain religions. Instead, he said the bill recognizes the Ten Commandments that appear in the Old Testament of the Bible. The law stated that displays should be supplemented by material highlighting its historical background.
In 2024, Louisiana became the first state to require that all classrooms in public schools and universities display 10 commandments. law Blocked Last year, it had a “outstanding religious” purpose by a federal judge who ruled the law.
The promotion of the Ten Commandments in public places Not new in Alabama.
But in the past few weeks, the bill has elicited voice protests from religious leaders around the state who believe that the scale of religious legislation violates the First Amendment and creates a hostile environment for religious minorities in Alabama’s public schools.
Steve Silverman, a rabbi who has worked at the Mobile Synagogue for 35 years, testified at a committee in March after hearing that he was concerned about the Ten Commandments Act, which “unfairly denied Alabamians who may have diverse views of religious traditions.”
On Thursday, many lawmakers moved forward in support of the bill.
“When you look around the world, you look around the world and see a lot of Western civilizations falling apart because we abandoned the roots and foundations that were built,” said Republican Rep. Ernie Jablo.
The bill expands the “don’t say gay” law
On the same day, representatives also swiftly passed two separate bills that banned drug performance in public schools and libraries without parental consent, and prohibiting teachers from displaying pride flags and promoting formal debate on LGBTQ+ issues.
Rep. Neil Lafferty, Alabama’s only openly gay lawmaker, testified against the bill.
“When banning identity from the classroom, I tell them the best thing they can expect is silence,” Rafferty said.
He said, “I won’t silence them, because I was there and I know what that silence would be like.”
Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky and North Carolina are among the states that have an existing version of Alabama’s “gay” law. Passed in 2022which has already banned formal class discussions on gender and sexuality that are not “age-appropriate” for students under 5th grade. The proposed law extends the prohibition to all grade levels.
a Similar Florida Law Last year, it returned to a legal settlement between civil rights groups and the state Department of Education.
Also on Thursday, the Alabama Senate advanced legislation administering politically appointed boards. Alabama Archives and Historical Bureau. That’s how the change was First proposed After several lawmakers got mad at the department hosting a 2023 lecture on LGBTQ+ history last year.
Republican Sen. Chris Elliott, sponsoring the bill, praised the department’s work Thursday, but said changes were needed to ensure there was “the board’s accountability to elected officials.”
At a recent rally outside the Capitol, Chuck Poole, who had been a Baptist pastor in Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia for 45 years, said he felt that Alabama’s recent religious bill slate was part of a wider push to promote Christian nationalism across the country.
“I think it’s rooted in fear, and it’s fear that America is changing and we’re losing power and control,” Poole said.
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Associated Press Writer Kim Chandler contributed to the report from Montgomery, Alabama.
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Riddle is a legional member of the Associated Press/Report’s American State University News Initiative. American Report It is a non-profit, national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms and reports on secret issues.
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