PLANO -- Should public schools allow the distribution of bibles? It's an issue that's causing controversy in communities and courtrooms across the country and here in Texas.

In Louisiana, a federal judge ordered a public school system to stop allowing in-school bible giveaways, claiming the practice violates the first amendment separation of church and state.

In Plano, where the schools allow it, making some parents and students very uncomfortable.

Gideon’s International, the same group that places Bibles in hotel rooms, distributes them at Plano schools, including Renner Middle School. The Bibles are placed on a table in the cafeteria. During lunch, students can choose to take or leave whatever's on the table.

Plano parent Jeff Dworkin says, "I don't mind somebody giving something like that out at the mall. I don't mind them giving it out after church or after any sort of activity, but during school hours, that to me, is inappropriate."

The Plano ISD has been the center of debate over religious expression since 2003, when an eight year old boy wasn't and allowed to hand out candy cane pens with a message about its Christian origin. His family filed a lawsuit.

Hiram Sasser of the Liberty Legal Institute, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of the family says, “The government has to treat all speech the same, including religious speech. So having a passive display table where kids could take or not take whatever they want is perfectly constitutional."

Two non-Christian parents told Channel 8 when their children chose not to take Bibles off the distribution table, they were harassed by students who did. And that's what concerns an ACLU attorney who says "Children are feeling coerced into taking bibles, so they won't face retribution from other students."

Jeff Dworkin understands that concern. The Plano parent says, “Whether or not they're Catholics, Muslims, Protestants, Jewish kids, Hindus, et cetera, some kids just don't feel comfortable going ahead and not being like their peers."

Plano ISD officials say any student caught harassing another will be disciplined.

E-mail sstoler@wfaa.com