Signs reading “In God We Trust” that were donated to the Carroll ISD are leading to questions about freedom of speech on school campuses.
Signs saying "In God We Trust" will now hang in Carroll ISD schools after being donated by a locally-owned wireless provider.
Patriot Mobile, which labels itself a Christian conservative wireless provider, donated the signs to the Carroll Independent School District and they will now be hung in CISD schools.
According to a state law passed in 2021, schools are required to display signs or posters bearing the national motto in a conspicuous place provided that the signs were donated to the school or bought with private donations.
“Patriot Mobile is honored to donate these posters to CISD, and we are very excited to see them amongst all of our schools,” said Scott Coburn, the chief marketing officer for the carrier.
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At Monday night's school board meeting three people spoke in favor of the signs, with no opposition during the presentation to the panel.
But the Southlake Anti-Racism Coalition has raised concerns. Their founder, Anya Kushwaha, told NBC 5 the law is a disturbing dissolution between the separation of church and state.
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“I feel like they don't have a choice right now to put them up, but hopefully this will spark larger conversations about having more freedom of expression, so if they are allowed to put up signs like this there should be no reasons that other students or people can’t put up signs that have different messaging,” said Anya Kushwaha, co-founder of the Southlake Anti-Racism Coalition.
The national motto, "In God We Trust," was signed into law in 1956 by President Eisenhower and reaffirmed by Congress as the nation's official motto several times since, as recently as 2011.
According to SB797, the sign or poster must contain a representation of the United States flag centered under the national motto and a representation of the state flag; and may not depict any words, images, or other information other than the representations listed in Subdivision (1).
