Several Texas school districts — including five in Tarrant County — must remove Ten Commandments displays from classrooms by Dec. 1, a federal judge ordered Tuesday.
The order temporarily blocks a new state law that requires the religious text to be posted in every public school.
The injunction directly affects the Fort Worth, Arlington, Northwest, Mansfield and Azle school districts as well as 10 others. Various civil rights groups have challenged the new requirement in courts seeking to overturn the state law.
Spokespeople for the Fort Worth and Northwest school districts did not immediately return a request to comment.
U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia issued the preliminary injunction noting that the law is a violation of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. He later wrote that families would face unwelcome religious displays without court intervention.
The order stems from a lawsuit filed Sept. 22 by 15 multifaith and nonreligious families, including one from Fort Worth, challenging districts that had begun installing or preparing to install the posters despite an earlier ruling declaring the law unconstitutional.
A federal appeals court will hear arguments over the Texas law and a similar one in Louisiana in January.
Plaintiffs’ attorneys said districts have an independent obligation to follow the U.S. Constitution, which supersedes state statute.
The law, which was brought forward by state Sen. Phil King, R-Weatherford, requires all Texas public classrooms display the Ten Commandments in a sign at least 16 inches by 20 inches in size and located in a visible place.
King, who represents parts of Tarrant County and Fort Worth, previously told the Report he expected legal challenges when he proposed the law, but he foresees victory.
What must be displayed in public classrooms?
Senate Bill 10 requires all Texas public school classrooms to feature a sign with the Ten Commandments. Here’s what the law requires to be displayed:
The Ten Commandments
I AM the LORD thy God.
Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven images.
Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain.
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
Thou shalt not kill.
Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house.
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his cattle, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1.
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