A federal judge on Tuesday ordered several Texas school districts to remove Ten Commandments displays from classrooms, issuing the ruling in brought by families who argue the postings violate the Constitution鈥檚 ban on government-endorsed religion.
U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia 14 districts from enforcing Senate Bill 10, the new state law requiring public schools to display the biblical text in classrooms. Garcia wrote that it would be 鈥渋mpractical, if not impossible鈥� to protect students from 鈥渦nwelcome religious displays鈥� without halting enforcement of the law.
The districts must remove the displays by Dec. 1, and the order will remain in effect while the case continues. This applies only to the districts named in the lawsuit, but the groups behind the case are urging all Texas school districts to avoid displaying the Ten Commandments.
鈥淭oday鈥檚 ruling is yet another affirmation of what Texans already know: The First Amendment guarantees families and faith communities 鈥� not the government 鈥� the right to instill religious beliefs in our children,鈥� said Chloe Kempf, attorney for the ACLU of Texas. 鈥淓very school district in Texas is now on notice that implementing S.B. 10 violates their students鈥� constitutional rights.鈥�
The lawsuit was filed in September when some districts began putting up the posters after in a different case that called the law 鈥減lainly unconstitutional.鈥� That earlier ruling across Texas鈥� largest metro areas. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a vocal supporter of SB 10, has appealed that decision.
Paxton has also backed SB 11, which allows school boards to set aside time for voluntary prayer or the reading of religious texts in classrooms. His office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Similar lawsuits have challenged nearly identical laws in other states. A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blocked statewide and a federal court has blocked the law in several school districts.
Here are the Texas school districts blocked from displaying the Ten Commandments:
- Alamo Heights ISD
- Arlington ISD
- Austin ISD
- Azle ISD
- Comal ISD
- Conroe ISD
- Cypress-Fairbanks ISD
- Dripping Springs ISD
- Flour Bluff ISD
- Fort Bend ISD
- Fort Worth ISD
- Frisco ISD
- Georgetown ISD
- Houston ISD
- Lake Travis ISD
- Lackland ISD
- Lovejoy ISD
- Mansfield ISD
- McAllen ISD
- McKinney ISD
- North East ISD
- Northwest ISD
- Northside ISD
- Plano ISD
- Rockwall ISD
