A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked 11 public school districts in Texas’ largest metropolitan areas from displaying the Ten Commandments in classrooms as required by a new state law set to take effect Sept. 1.
Two days after the conclusion of a court hearing in San Antonio, U.S. Judge Fred Biery ruled that Senate Bill 10 "likely violates both the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses of the First Amendment" to the U.S. Constitution. He added that "even though the Ten Commandments would not be affirmatively taught, the captive audience of students likely would have questions, which teachers would feel compelled to answer."
Biery ruled in favor of 16 Texas families of various religious and non-religious backgrounds, who sued school districts in the Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio areas. The plaintiffs are represented by a coalition of civil rights organizations: the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Texas, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and the Freedom From Religion Foundation.
In a statement, Tommy Beser-Clancy of the ACLU of Texas said, "Today's ruling is a major win that protects the constitutional right to religious freedom for Texas families of all backgrounds."
The ruling is effective only for the 11 school districts named in the suit, including Houston ISD, Cy-Fair ISD and Fort Bend ISD, which are among the largest districts in the Houston area.
Houston Public Media reported Tuesday that a number of Christian and conservative groups have been actively working to deliver Ten Commandments posters to districts in the northern suburbs of the Houston area and elsewhere in the state. Senate Bill 10 stipulates that while schools are not required to provide or pay for the posters, they can't reject a donated poster.
Love Heals Youth CEO Rebecca Smith, whose Houston-area organization is participating in the effort, said the injunction would not deter her from delivering posters to districts not impacted and that they are reaching out to "smaller districts" to see if they need posters.
Similar laws requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in public schools, passed in Arkansas and Louisiana, also have been at least partially blocked by courts.
This is a developing story.
Copyright 2025 Houston Public Media News 88.7