A group of Dallas area families and faith leaders have filed a lawsuit attempting to block new Texas laws requiring copies of the 10 commandments to be posted in all public school classrooms.
A federal lawsuit filed Tuesday argues that the measure is an unconstitutional breach of the separation of church and state.
Texas is the newest and largest state to attempt to delegate legal challenges elsewhere. A federal court of appeals blocked similar laws in Louisiana on Friday. Some families are suing Arkansas law.
The plaintiffs in the Texas lawsuit are groups of leaders and families of Christian and Islamic faiths. He has designated Texas Educational Institutions, state Board of Education Mike Moreto, and three Dallas District School Districts as defendants.
“The government should govern. The church should serve,” the lawsuit said. “The others are threats to both our democratic and our faith souls.”
The 10 Commandments Act is one of the efforts to insert religion into public schools, primarily in conservative-led states. Advocates say the Ten Commandments are part of the foundations of the US judicial and educational system and should be displayed.
Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican of Texas, signed the law on June 21st to the 10 commandments. It also enacted measures that required school districts to provide students and staff with time to read religious texts daily, voluntary prayers or during school hours.
The Texas Educational Institution did not immediately respond to email requests for comment.
Abbott, the Texas Attorney General in 2005, managed to maintain the 10 Commandments memorial on the Capitol grounds at the U.S. Supreme Court, defending the state’s classroom law in a social media post Wednesday.
“Faith and freedom are the foundation of our nation,” Abbott posted on X. “If someone sues, we’ll win that fight.”
Opponents say 10 commandments and prayer measures violate the religious freedom of others, and more lawsuits are expected. American Civil Liberties Union said Americans will unite for the separation of churches and states, and the freedom of the Religious Foundation will file a lawsuit against the measures of the Ten Commandments.
Under the new law, public schools must copy or frame the classrooms of the commandments or framed 16 x 20 inches (41 x 51 cm) or large posters or framed copies.
The lawsuit states that Texas has nearly six million students in around 9,100 public schools, including thousands of students of faith with little or no faith in the 10 commandments.
The Texas Educational Institution did not immediately respond to email requests for comment. The law will take effect on September 1st, but most public school districts will begin next year’s school year in August.
