{"id":990464,"date":"2026-08-09T05:47:38","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T05:47:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/990464\/"},"modified":"2026-08-09T05:47:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T05:47:38","slug":"houston-moms-lose-first-round-in-fight-over-ten-commandments-in-texas-classrooms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/990464\/","title":{"rendered":"Houston moms lose first round in fight over Ten Commandments in Texas classrooms"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\"><strong>HOUSTON<\/strong> \u2013 A Harris County judge on Friday declined to issue an emergency order blocking Texas\u2019 new requirement that public school classrooms display the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.click2houston.com\/topic\/Ten_Commandments\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.click2houston.com\/topic\/Ten_Commandments\/\">Ten Commandments<\/a>, keeping the law in place for now as a lawsuit filed by three Houston-area mothers moves toward a preliminary injunction hearing expected later this month.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 etvbxt font_openSans articleList\">\n<li class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Stack-vJ7SwH7U__StackBase-sc-1m5bkhd-0 evEXvX dsnUCb\"\/><\/ul>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">Supporters of the mandate immediately hailed the ruling as a win. One backer said they were \u201cgrateful for the court\u2019s decision today declining to block the Texas 10 Commandment Law,\u201d arguing the display is about \u201cacknowledging our nation\u2019s history\u201d and \u201clegal heritage,\u201d not forcing students to adopt religious beliefs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">But the plaintiffs, who sued under the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act, said the court\u2019s refusal to grant a temporary restraining order does not resolve the central legal question: whether Texas Education Code \u00a7 1.0041 unlawfully burdens religious exercise and violates a voter-approved parental rights amendment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">\u201cWe asked for emergency relief. We did not get it,\u201d said Meagan Hassan, lead counsel for the plaintiffs. \u201cThat ruling does not resolve the legal question at the heart of this case.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">The lawsuit \u2014 Emily Roth, et al. v. The State of Texas, et al. \u2014 was filed July 30 by Emily Roth, Dr. Audrey Rosa Nath, and Sanjam Kaur Sohal against the State of Texas, Attorney General Ken Paxton, Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath, Houston ISD, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD and Spring Branch ISD. The plaintiffs say they are not bringing a federal claim, focusing instead on state law protections.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 etvbxt font_openSans articleList\">\n<li class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Stack-vJ7SwH7U__StackBase-sc-1m5bkhd-0 evEXvX dsnUCb\"\/><\/ul>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">As the case proceeds, both sides are emphasizing what the mandate means for students returning to school next week across the Houston area.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">Roth, the lead plaintiff, said the issue is not religion itself but the state choosing a religious text for public classrooms. \u201cThis case is not against religion,\u201d Roth said. \u201cIt is against the state deciding whose religion belongs in a public school classroom, and deciding it without asking one parent in Texas.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">Supporters counter that students are not being asked to participate in any religious practice. \u201cNo student is required to pray. No student required to profess faith. No student to agree with the Ten Commandments,\u201d the supporter said, insisting that \u201cseeing something is not the same as being coerced to believe something\u201d and that \u201cexposure is not coercion.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">Hassan argued the plaintiffs\u2019 legal challenge is straightforward and rooted in state statutes and promises to voters. She said the state has told Texans \u201cthe government would not come between them and their faith,\u201d but that the mandate places a state-selected religious message into every classroom.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">Backers of the law, however, said the Ten Commandments\u2019 influence extends beyond religious doctrine and into the foundations of Western legal tradition. In remarks after the ruling, a supporter argued the display is meant to recognize history, describing the Ten Commandments as part of the background of American law and saying the state should not have to \u201cerase history because it also has a religious flavor to it.\u201d<\/p>\n<ul class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 etvbxt font_openSans articleList\">\n<li class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Stack-vJ7SwH7U__StackBase-sc-1m5bkhd-0 evEXvX dsnUCb\"\/><\/ul>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">The plaintiffs say the postings carry a different message for children \u2014 particularly those who do not share the underlying religious tradition. Roth said that even if some people view the Ten Commandments as universal moral concepts, the posters raise questions for students about identity and belonging in a state-run classroom. \u201cWhile she\u2019s working out what the poster means, she\u2019s also working out something else: whose text this is, and that it is not ours,\u201d Roth said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">Supporters reject the idea that the postings substantially burden anyone\u2019s religious exercise, which is the legal standard at issue under the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The supporter criticized what they described as the lawsuit\u2019s theory that the mere presence of the display creates an unlawful burden, arguing instead that religious liberty protections are designed to prevent government coercion \u2014 not remove all religious references from public spaces.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">The two sides also clash over how the recently approved parental rights amendment applies in public schools. The plaintiffs argue the mandate undermines parents\u2019 authority over religious upbringing and imposes a state decision without parental input. Supporters respond that parental rights do not amount to \u201ca constitutional veto over what every other child may encounter in a public school classroom,\u201d and said those rights belong to all parents \u2014 including families who support the displays.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">For now, the denial of the temporary restraining order leaves the Ten Commandments mandate in effect while the case continues. Supporters said the next major step will be a preliminary injunction hearing, expected later in August, where a judge could decide whether the law should be blocked while litigation plays out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 jJNfBD fSvavs article-text\">The plaintiffs\u2019 children attend three different Houston-area districts. The children are not identified by name, and the plaintiffs have asked that the children and their schools not be sought or published.<\/p>\n<p>Start Here, Houston<\/p>\n<p class=\"Box-_wrDxHtU__Box-sc-10sa3ie-0 Text-nO2aZ44r__TextBase-sc-s2hv5x-0 bTVksG\">More Stories Like This In Our Email Newsletter<\/p>\n<p>Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston &#8211; All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HOUSTON \u2013 A Harris County judge on Friday declined to issue an emergency order blocking Texas\u2019 new requirement&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":990465,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5130],"tags":[407,6386,4345,83274,358,3187],"class_list":["post-990464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-education","tag-harris-county","tag-houston","tag-ten-commandments","tag-texas","tag-tx"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/117063977807743431","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/990464","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=990464"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/990464\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/990465"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=990464"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=990464"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=990464"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}