The voters spoke: Ten Commandments monument should not be resurrected at Oklahoma State Capitol

I don’t think I’ll ever forget standing in the darkness outside the state Capitol, watching crews saw apart the base of the state’s mammoth Ten Commandments monument.

Concerned about drawing unwanted attention, state officials decided to wait until about 10:30 p.m. in October 2015 to follow the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s orders to remove the 6-foot tall, two-ton granite monument.

The court ruled in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union by determining that displaying an overtly religious monument on Capitol grounds violated a state constitutional prohibition against using public property to support a singular religion.

So, I stood among a small crowd of people — mostly media and law enforcement — watching the spectacle. Crews created an awful din along with a huge cloud of dust as they tried to dismantle solid rock that wasn’t meant to be moved. Crews then used a small crane to haul it away to its new home on private property down the road. State officials estimated removing the statue cost about $4,700.

As I submitted my story for publication, I remember naively thinking, “Well, that’s the end of that.”

Except, it wasn’t.

Still stinging from the Supreme Court slapdown, lawmakers put a measure on the 2016 ballot that asked voters to remove the constitutional prohibition dating to statehood that defines the line between church and state. 

Under the guise of restoring the monument to state Capitol grounds, State Question 790 sought to allow state land and money to be used for religious purposes.

Oklahoma voters as it turned out wanted none of that. They resoundingly rejected the ballot proposal by nearly 14 percentage points.

Then in 2018 — despite voters’ clear directive and the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s ruling — lawmakers passed House Bill 2177 that allows for the display of the Ten Commandments and other historical documents on public property.

Then the issue largely seemed to go dormant. 

Until now.

Oklahoma Voice senior reporter Barbara Hoberock reported that Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant, has filed a bill to restore the monument outside the Capitol “as a symbol of its historical significance for Oklahoman and American history.”

It’s not clear why there hasn’t been an effort to move the monument back before now, but Bullard said it’s time it was returned. He cites the 2018 legislation as a reason to press forward. However, he warned his plan would face resistance from people who “do not speak for the majority of Oklahomans who want to honor our Christian and constitutional heritage.”

Once the monument is placed, it would take a vote of three-fourths of legislators and gubernatorial approval to remove it. That’s coincidentally the same insanely high bar it takes to raise taxes at the state Capitol.

While some Oklahomans might view the measure as an outrageous joke or a political stunt, it’s safe to say that based on the 2018 action, this is a bill that could gain momentum and go all the way.

If you’re feeling a bad case of deja vu, you’re not alone. We all know how this silly vanity fight is going to end if it becomes law. Hint, it will be expensive for taxpayers.

The idea unsurprisingly has already faced pushback from the ACLU along with the Oklahoma chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. 

Opponents argue that lawmakers shouldn’t be spending their time on such a bill, and it marginalizes people who adhere to minority religions.

It also seemingly marginalizes the will of the majority of Oklahomans. Voters made it crystal clear at the ballot box only a few years ago that they don’t want leaders intermingling state and religion. By doing so, they rebuffed lawmakers’ argument that the Ten Commandments needed to be restored at the Capitol.

There’s no better way for the majority of Oklahomans to let lawmakers know when their priorities are out of whack than at the ballot box. 

Yet, Oklahoma lawmakers still seem oddly obsessed with the thought of displaying the commandments throughout our public life. Don’t forget, there’s also a bill that would require a display in public school classrooms, too.

Oklahoma voters got it right in 2016. Religion should be kept separate from the government. Religion is often a very personal thing, and we don’t need the state government dictating what beliefs to adhere to or erecting statues to any deities on public lands.

But even if lawmakers disagree, they need to honor Oklahoma voters, not the religious beliefs of their fathers and mothers.

For nearly a decade, the Ten Commandments monument has sat largely disregarded at its new home on private property. 

It’s still publicly displayed, so if people want to see it, they can drive a few blocks south of the Capitol and worship to their heart’s content.

It seemed like the best compromise for everyone then. It still seems like the best compromise now. 

Lawmakers can safely pay homage to a favored idol while not running afoul of state law and what the majority of Oklahomans clearly want.