NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee school district that was sued last year by two atheist families for promoting Christianity has agreed to stop the practice.
In a consent decree filed in federal court in Nashville on Monday, the Smith County School District admitted that Christian prayers were delivered over the school address system, Bibles were distributed to fifth graders, and Bible verses were posted in school hallways, among other things.
The decree states that promoting religion and coercing religious exercise is a violation of the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause. The lawsuit was brought on behalf of the families by the American Civil Liberties Union.
