From the Associated Press:
PORTLAND, Ore. – An Oregon legislative leader plans to introduce a bill to repeal a 1923 state law that bans teachers from wearing religious garb.
House Speaker Dave Hunt, D-Gladstone, said he will push to "allow teachers to have the same religious free exercise rights as every other Oregonian" when legislators meet in February.
Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian and state schools Superintendent Susan Castillo, who recently sent letters to every lawmaker asking them to drop the ban, also support such a proposal.
The Legislature passed a law this year allowing all workers except teachers to wear religious dress at work in most instances. Its passage led to questions about why the law remains on the books, given that Oregon is one of only three states with such a ban.
The law, which was aimed at keeping Catholics out of public schools, has not been tested in court since the Eugene School District won a 1986 Oregon Supreme Court case that upheld its firing of a Sikh teacher for wearing a turban.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, which has long supported the ban, said the Legislature should not end it without enacting additional protections for Oregon students. The Oregon Education Association has not taken a position on the issue, a spokeswoman said.
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