Texas Ten Commandments Law Heads to Supreme Court

Civil rights advocates have formally petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Texas law that mandates the display of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. The move sets the stage for a potential landmark ruling on the boundaries of religious expression in state-funded education.

The petition, filed on behalf of more than two dozen Texas families by the American Civil Liberties Union and allied groups, challenges an April decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In a narrow 9-8 ruling, the New Orleans-based court upheld the Texas statute, which requires classrooms to display a state-selected version of the Ten Commandments drawn from the King James Bible.

The families' legal team argues that the requirement breaches fundamental First Amendment protections concerning the separation of church and state. Their brief contends that imposing scripture on young, captive audiences for the duration of their schooling strikes at the core of constitutional guarantees.

The appeals court's decision reversed a lower court ruling that had blocked roughly a dozen Texas school districts from putting up the posters. The law, signed by Republican Governor Greg Abbott, took effect in September of last year.

A notable feature of the Texas law is that districts are only required to hang the posters if they are donated. Following the law's enactment, conservative groups and individuals began distributing boxes of the displays to campuses across the state.

The 5th Circuit's ruling defended the mandate, noting that no student is compelled to recite the Commandments or affirm their religious origin. The same court also ruled in February that Louisiana could enforce a similar law.

The push to place the Ten Commandments in classrooms has been led by Republican lawmakers in the South. Louisiana became the first state to pass such a requirement in 2024, with Arkansas and Texas following suit. Alabama's governor signed a comparable law earlier this year.