Since the assassination of Charlie Kirk, there have been no shortage of efforts to memorialize the conservative influencer by Republican elected officials at every level of government. Tennessee is no exception. This week the State Senate passed SB 1828 known as the “Charlie Kirk American Heritage Act” by a 27-6 vote.
The measure allows public schools, including charter schools and public universities, to teach the “positive impact of religion on American History.” The language goes on to specify that the positive religious influences that may be taught are Judeo-Christian values.
But it doesn’t stop there.
An oddly specific list of subjects comprises the remainder of the text. For example, teachers may now instruct their students about the painting the “Embarkation of the Pilgrims” including its religious messages. Schools can discuss the religious views of the signers of the Declaration of Independence and the “appeal made to the biblical exodus in the fight for independence.” Students can now hear about the positive impact of religious leaders like Billy Graham and the inclusion of the words “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Most legislation in Tennessee is drafted by Legal Services. A legislator brings an idea and the attorneys in Legal Service prepare the bill using the proper legal language and format. It is rare that a legislator drafts the entirety of the language of a bill, especially to this level of specificity. Senate Bill 1828 reads very much like model legislation from a special interest, and sure enough, the exact bill just passed the Ohio House and is making its way through the Senate.
Whether the bill is directly from Kirk’s Turning Point USA or another conservative organization invoking Kirk’s name is unclear. What is clear is the intent of the legislation to infuse a narrative into public schools that inserts Christianity into historical events where it might not actually belong.
Judeo Christian Influence Not Always Positive
State Senator Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis), a Christian, rightly pointed out during debate that Christianity as well as other religious beliefs have been used in negative ways throughout history. She cited the fact that slave owners cherry-picked Scripture to justify slavery and created a version of the Bible excluding Exodus so slaves would not be tempted to flee their masters as the Hebrews fled their enslavement from Pharoh and Egypt.
Puritan theology fueled the hysteria of the Salem witch trials and led to the execution of 19 people. Efforts to forcibly “Christianize” Native Americans led to Indian Schools where rampant abuse was inflicted. Tensions among Protestants and Catholics resulted in numerous incidents of violence in New York and Pennsylvania. And the list could go on and on. Since the beginning of time, religion has been misused by some to achieve self-serving objectives.
Akbari’s point is correct. If we are going to offer students the positive influences of religion on history, they must have the complete picture of history, including the negative, if for no other reason, then as a cautionary tale.
Disputed Facts
America as a Christian nation is a disputed point among academics, and clearly SB 1828 leans into the narrative that America was intended to be a Christian nation. There is no doubt that many of the founding fathers worshipped a Judeo-Christian God. It is also true that some were deists and others were of no particular religious persuasion.
The very fact that the First Amendment to the Constitution guarantees "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” seems to intellectually require that we acknowledge that founders and influential leaders throughout our 250-year history were Christian and non-Christian. When clear and accurate, it seems appropriate to reference the influence of religion, Christian or not, played in historic events and decisions.
A Bill in Search of a Problem
It is understandable in Tennessee that teachers and school districts would be wary of teaching topics regarding race, politics, or even current events following legislation banning books, “divisive topics,” and a rash of teacher firings in districts across the country. Tennessee, however, is a “deep red” state where intertwining Christian values with any school subject wouldn’t generate many serious complaints. Tennessee already allows the Bible to be taught as history and literature.
It has long been understood, though some have tested the limits, that teachers in public schools cannot proselytize to their students. However, pilgrims seeking religious freedom, the words of George Washington that reference God, and even the sermons of Jonathan Edwards as American literature have long been fair game in Tennessee.
This bill is either a product of the fearmongering about “radical left” indoctrination or election year ploy to energize the conservative base.