Texas families of different faiths sue over law requiring Ten Commandments in classrooms
FILE - The Ten Commandments monument erected in 1956 at Albert Lea's Central Park, sits nestled among a cluster of overgrown pine trees. (DAVID BREWSTER/Star Tribune via Getty Images)
AUSTIN - Sixteen Texas families have filed a federal lawsuit in an attempt to block a law that would require the display of the Ten Commandments in classrooms in the state.
Ten Commandments lawsuit
Plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Jewish, Christian, Unitarian Unviersalist, Hindu or nonreligious and are from across Texas. They are being represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and the Freedom From Religion Foundation, with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP serving as pro bono counsel.
11 school districts, including Austin, Houston and Plano ISDs, are named as defendants in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit argues that Senate Bill 10, the bill that would require the Ten Commandments be displayed, is not neutral with respect to religion and that students will be forcibly subject to religious doctrine in a "manner that conflicts with their families’ religious and nonreligious beliefs and practices."
The suit also claims the law violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the US Constitution, which states "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion."
The plaintiffs are seeking to prevent the districts from displaying the Ten Commandments.
What they're saying:
"In a state as diverse as Texas, families from both religious and nonreligious backgrounds are coming together to challenge this unconstitutional law. Their message is clear: Our public schools are not Sunday schools," said Adriana Piñon, legal director of the ACLU of Texas.
"While our Jewish faith treats the Ten Commandments as sacred, the version mandated under this law does not match the text followed by our family, and the school displays will conflict with the religious beliefs and values we seek to instill in our child," said plaintiff Rabbi Mara Nathan.
"Posting the Ten Commandments in public schools is un-American and un-Baptist," said plaintiff Pastor Griff Martin. "My children’s faith should be shaped by family and our religious community, not by a Christian nationalist movement that confuses God with power."
Senate Bill 10
The backstory:
Senate Bill 10 requires every public school classroom to display the Christian Ten Commandments. The bill was approved by Gov. Abbott in late June.
The law requires a "durable poster or framed copy" of the Ten Commandments be posted in each classroom. The copies would need to be at least 16 inches wide and 20 inches tall and "in a size and typeface that is legible to a person with average vision from anywhere in the classroom."
The bill faced some opposition before passage. Amendments allowing school boards to vote on their involvement or allowing other codes of ethics from other religions were shot down in the House.
The act will take effect on Sept. 1, 2025.
Louisiana Ten Commandments law
Big picture view:
The challenge comes just weeks after a federal appeals court called a similar law in Louisiana "plainly unconstitutional."
The law, passed by the Louisiana legislature in 2024, requires a poster or framed document with the Ten Commandments to be posted in public schools.
The law was scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2025, but a group of public school parents sued, saying the law violated the First Amendment.
In November, a U.S. District Court called the law unconstitutional and barred the state from enforcing the law.
In June, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling.
The ruling from the three-judge panel focused much of its argument on a past Supreme Court decision.
In 1980, the Supreme Court struck down a Kentucky statute requiring that the Ten Commandments be displayed in schools.
The ruling is likely to be appealed to the Supreme Court.
Other challenges to Senate Bill 10
Dig deeper:
The students in the lawsuit attend schools in the Dallas, DeSoto and Lancaster independent school districts.
The lawsuit argues that requiring the Ten Commandments to be posted in every classroom violates long-standing precedents and the First Amendment.
The Source: Information in this article comes from the lawsuit filed with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, the ACLU of Texas, the Texas Legislature and past FOX reporting.