The American Civil Liberties Union and allied religious-freedom groups filed a federal lawsuit in San Antonio on 2 July on behalf of 16 Texas families from Jewish, Christian, Unitarian Universalist, Hindu and non-religious backgrounds. The complaint targets 11 school districts, including Austin, Houston, Fort Bend, Cy-Fair and Plano, and seeks to block enforcement of Senate Bill 10, which obliges public-school classrooms to display a state-prescribed version of the Ten Commandments.
Plaintiffs argue the mandate violates the First Amendment’s Establishment and Free Exercise clauses by pressuring students to adopt the state’s preferred religious doctrine. They are requesting a preliminary injunction to halt the requirement before it takes effect on 1 September, when roughly 5.5 million students return to more than 9,000 campuses. Under the statute, each classroom must exhibit a durable copy of the commandments at least 16 by 20 inches and readable from anywhere in the room.
The ACLU case follows an earlier lawsuit filed on 25 June by Dallas-area faith leaders and families against the Texas Education Agency and three local districts on similar constitutional grounds. Both filings cite the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1980 Stone v. Graham decision and a 5th U.S. Circuit Court ruling last month that deemed a comparable Louisiana law “plainly unconstitutional.”
Governor Greg Abbott, who signed SB 10 on 21 June, has defended the measure, stating that “faith and freedom are the foundation of our nation” and vowing to prevail in court. Supporters say the commandments form part of America’s legal heritage, while opponents contend compulsory displays infringe on religious liberty and marginalize students who do not share the beliefs.
The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit Wednesday against a Texas law requiring schools to display the Ten Commandments, the second lawsuit filed against the law in just over a week.
Sixteen Texas families of different faiths have filed a lawsuit looking to block a state law that would require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in school classrooms.
