Mississippi moves toward posting Commandments in public buildings
By Associated Press
Published March 31, 2005
JACKSON, Miss. - Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour indicated Wednesday he was inclined to sign a bill that would require all public buildings to have postings of the Ten Commandments, "In God We Trust" and excerpts from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.
The Mississippi House overwhelmingly approved the measure on a 97-15 vote with little debate Wednesday. The Senate approved it Tuesday on a 40-4 vote, but not before one lawmaker tried to kill the bill.
Barbour spokesman Pete Smith said "the governor is inclined to sign" the bill into law.
Democratic Sen. Johnnie Walls unsuccessfully tried to kill the bill Tuesday.
"What we're attempting to do here is proselytize our religion," he said. "We're setting ourselves up for a lot of ridicule. Again, Mississippi will look less than progressive."
Rabbi Debra Kassoff called the bill a "flagrant and vain use of God's name for political gain."
"I am offended by the Legislature's disregard for separation of church and state, a principle that has allowed religious minorities of every creed to live and flourish in this country for over 200 years, largely without fear," Kassoff wrote in an e-mail to the Associated Press.
Under the bill, the Decalogue, the Beatitudes and "In God We Trust," can be posted in public buildings. Since 2001, Mississippi has had a law requiring the motto "In God We Trust" to be posted in every public school classroom.
"I'm in favor of that bill without equivocation," said House Speaker Billy McCoy, D-Rienzi.
Rep. Reecy Dickson, D-Macon, who was opposed to the bill, said the legislation served no purpose and the passages could appear on public school walls housing a diverse student population.
"It seems unjust to impose someone's religious beliefs onto someone else," she said.
But Azzam Abumirshid, president of the Mississippi Muslim Association, said he has no objection to the bill.
"The Muslim faith and the Christian faith, we share the Ten Commandments. I don't know why people felt we would be offended," Abumirshid said.
Some lawmakers said the state shouldn't proceed with the bill until the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of displaying the Ten Commandments on public property.
The justices are weighing arguments in cases from Kentucky and Texas. It is the court's first consideration of the issue since 1980, when justices ruled the Ten Commandments could not be displayed in public schools.
Rep. Cecil Brown, D-Jackson, who supported the bill, said if the legislation is found to be unconstitutional the displays would be removed.
"The more we can remind people about their moral ethics in society, the better off we are," Brown said.
The American Civil Liberties Union did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
