Trump Promises Fresh Push To Defend Prayer In Public Schools

President Donald Trump said on Monday that he would take action to protect students’ rights to pray at public schools. 

Trump made the announcement during the second official hearing of the Religious Liberty Commission at the Museum of the Bible. The focus of the hearing was on religious liberty and public education, featuring testimony from students who claimed their religious beliefs were challenged at school. 

“For most of our country’s history, the Bible was found in every classroom in the nation, yet in many schools, today’s students are instead indoctrinated with anti-religious propaganda and some are even punished for their religious beliefs,” Trump said. 

Trump pointed to a young girl from Texas named Hannah Allen, who was reprimanded for meeting with a group of her classmates during lunch to pray for an injured friend. 

“To support students like Hannah, I’m pleased to announce this morning that the Department of Education will soon issue new guidance protecting the right to prayer in our public schools,” Trump said. 

What the guidance will look like is not clear. The Supreme Court recently ruled in favor of a high school football coach from Washington who was fired for leading voluntary prayers on the field after games. The court ruled that the school district violated the coach’s rights by disciplining him. 

The new protections for prayer come as the Trump administration on Monday rolled out an “America Prays” initiative to encourage Americans to meet with 10 others once a week to pray for the country. 

During the hearing, Trump also said that his administration would work to get answers about the attack at a Catholic school in Minnesota last month by a transgender-identifying male. 

“Two weeks ago, in Minneapolis, a demonic killer shot 21 people and murdered the two precious children at a Catholic school,” Trump said. “Our hearts are shattered for the families of those beautiful children.”

“The Trump administration will have no tolerance for terrorism or political violence, and that includes hate crimes against Christians, Jews, or anybody else,” he added. 

The Religious Liberty Commission was established in May through a Trump executive order directing it to produce a comprehensive report on the foundations of religious freedom and the leading threats it faces in the United States today.