A few weeks ago, a State Representative made a playful commentary about separation of church and state by going into the House’s members’ lounge and hiding all the Bibles that are placed there to promote Christianity.
Now, as part of an overblown stunt, this Representative— Stephanie Stahl-Hamilton (D-21)— is facing a farcical ethics violation hearing. If it goes too far, it could see her kicked out of office.
Let’s be clear about the facts here. The Bible is the only religious text made available in the members’ lounge. It’s unclear who placed them there in the first place. Under constitutional law, they shouldn’t have been there in the first place.
Rep. Andres Cano recently said: “I have not gotten any reassurance that the Book of Mormon, the Quran, any of the texts that are super important to Arizonans, Americans, people of this world, would be included in our members’ lounge.”
What you can do:
- Go in-person to the House Ethics Committee Hearing tomorrow 5/25 at 10AM. Wear your Secular AZ shirt or another garment expressing support for separation of church and state.
- Contact members of the House Ethics Committee. Express your support for Stahl-Hamilton and secular government, and oppose the promotion of religion in state facilities.
Committee member contact info:
Rep. Joseph Chaplik (R), Chair – jchaplik@azleg.gov – 602-926-3436
Rep. Travis Grantham (R), Vice Chair – tgrantham@azleg.gov – 602-926-4868
Rep. Gail Griffin (R) – ggriffin@azleg.gov – 602-926-5895
Rep. Jennifer Longdon (D) – jlongdon@azleg.gov – 602-926-3264
Rep. Christopher Mathis (D) – cmathis@azleg.gov – 602-926-3138
Thank you for defending secular government with us,
-Secular AZ