A hearing was scheduled Thursday on a Plano School District policy that four families allege bans religious expression from their children’s classrooms.

The suit alleges that the district engaged in "unconstitutional and illegal actions" by prohibiting students from handing out candy canes and pencils with religious messages and
banning red and green napkins at holiday parties.

The Plano-based Liberty Legal Institute represents the families.

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“This lawsuit includes a large amount of evidence that demonstrates the pervasive religious hostitlity in Plano ISD,” said Hiram Sasser, director of litigation for Liberty Legal Institute.

The institute says the policy prohibited a third grader from passing out goody bags that included candy canes with religious messages while “secular gifts from other students were permitted” and it says a young girl was prohibited from passing out pencils with “Jesus” engraved on them.

The institute says Plano school officials sent home a letter last week requesting parents not to send children to school with anything red or green during the holiday season.

School district attorney Richard Abernathy denies the claims and says school officials recently decided to allow the distribution of all materials religious or otherwise at holiday parties.

The plaintiffs' attorneys were surprised by Abernathy's
statement, saying neither students nor parents were informed of
such a change.

Abernathy says the district believes each student has a right to religious expression, but he added that "this area of the law is very complex."

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