Billboards protest Kentucky’s new ‘In God We Trust’ law

FFRF has launched a two-pronged campaign to combat Kentucky’s unwise new law requiring “In God We Trust” to be displayed in every public school.

FFRF has put together an art contest with a cash prize for the best student artwork protesting the new law. The Kentucky law specifically states that “In God We Trust” displays may be in the form of “student artwork,” opening the door for clever student artists to create art displays that conform to the law’s text but not its intent, says FFRF.

Meanwhile, FFRF placed its own protest artwork — an eye-catching cartoon by Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Steve Benson — on several billboards in Louisville in October. The cartoon jocularly points out there are many different gods humans have worshipped, not just one, and that many choose “none of the above.”

The billboards went up in Louisville at Bardstown and Bonnycastle, Barret and Rufer, Berry, Fegenbush, and Frankfort and Frank.

Any student currently enrolled in a Kentucky public school who disagrees with the new law requiring posting of “In God We Trust” is invited to submit a poster design or other artwork. The artwork must contain the phrase “In God We Trust,” but must either protest the motto, subvert the religious intent of the new law or otherwise show why “In God We Trust” is not an appropriate motto to place in a public school.

The grand prize is $500, with honorable mention awards of $200 each. Every student winner will also receive a “clean,” pre-“In God We Trust” $1 bill. Go to surveymonkey.com/r/C2C6GQ5.