US state of Alabama lifts ban on yoga in public schools

Teachers will have to use English names for yoga poses, and the use of the greeting ‘namaste’ is banned.

The US state of Alabama has lifted a ban on teaching yoga in schools after nearly 30 years, but instructors will have to use English names for poses and the salutation “namaste” would be forbidden. The state’s Governor Kay Ivey, a Republican, signed the bill (PDF) on Thursday, on the last day of the session, overturning a decision (PDF) put in place in 1993 which prohibited yoga, hypnosis and meditation in public schools in the state. The new bill was introduced by Representative Jeremy Gray, a Democrat and former American football player.