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By John Mariani | jmariani@syracuse.com
http://www.syracuse.com
on December 10, 2013 at 1:21 PM, updated December 10, 2013 at 1:23 PM
It’s now explicitly legal to wish someone a Merry Christmas in Texas schools, although at least one school hadn’t gotten the memo before controversy flared.
The so-called “Merry Christmas Law” passed nearly unanimously this year by the Texas Legislature allows the exchange of Christmas, Hanukkah and other religious greetings in the state’s classrooms. The statute also allows Christmas trees, menorahs and nativity scenes, as long as more than one faith is represented and a secular symbol, such as a snowman, also is shown, the Associated Press reported. Christmas songs and festive garb also are OK.
State officials sent memos to schools Monday telling them about the change in the law, Reuters said.
State Rep. Dwayne Bohac, the Houston Republican who sponsored the law, told a news conference that the measure was intended to codify the First Amendment’s religious protections and keep Christmas from being censored in public schools, AP said.
“I urge other states to stop a needless, stilted overreaction to Christmas and Hanukkah,” Bohac said. He said similar laws are under consideration in Alabama, Mississippi, Indiana and New Jersey and that a bill is expected to be filed in Oklahoma.