Texas, Louisiana argue to keep Ten Commandments in schools

A federal appeals court heard arguments in a case to determine whether laws requiring public schools in Louisiana and Texas to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms are unconstitutional.  

A three-judge panel of the 5^th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had ruled in June that Louisiana’s Ten Commandments law was “plainly unconstitutional.” But the decision was vacated in October as the court agreed to an en banc review, meaning with all of its judges. 

Groups including Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Freedom From Religion Foundation are representing the plaintiffs, a group of both religious and nonreligious families who want to block the laws.  

Jon Youngwood, also among the plaintiffs' legal counsel, said the court displayed “thoughtful engagement” during the Jan. 20 hearing. 

“This case centers on a fundamental constitutional principle: Families  – not the government – must retain the right to decide whether and how their children engage with religion,” he said. "The laws at issue disrupt that longstanding protection, and we look to the court to safeguard these core First Amendment guarantees.”  

Among the points of discussion during the hearing were whether requirements to display the Ten Commandments in public schools would amount to unconstitutional religious coercion or merely be a passive acknowledgement of a significant historical text.  

There were also references to Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, a case in which the Supreme Court ruled that a public school district had violated the constitutional rights of a former high school football coach who was fired over praying at the 50-yard line.  

That case overruled the “Lemon test,” a three-pronged standard through which the court had previously determined violations of what's known as the Establishment Clause. The First Amendment bars the government from "respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

Moving forward, the court said, such evaluations should include “reference to historical practices and understandings.”   

A federal judge temporarily blocked several Texas school districts from enforcing the state's Ten Commandments law when it went into effect in September, saying it was “likely to send an exclusionary and spiritually burdensome message” to children whose religious beliefs do not conform to the particular Judeo-Christian version of scripture required for the displays.    

USA TODAY reached out to the Texas attorney general's office, the Texas Education Agency and the Louisiana Department of Education for comment.  

Issue could make its way to the Supreme Court

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry and state Attorney General Liz Murrill held a press conference after the court adjourned, and both state leaders expressed confidence in their case.

Several judges, Murrill noted, referred to other texts that invoke religion or God and are permitted in public schools. The Declaration of Independence, Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address and Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter From a Birmingham Jail" were among the cited works.

Murrill said "there are limits" to religion's presence in public schools, but that "we think we're inside the limits" with the state's Ten Commandments law. If the court rules in their favor, Murrill said she expected the plaintiffs would appeal to the Supreme Court.

"What the United States Supreme Court will do with that is anybody's guess," she said.

Landry questioned, "why we can't just embrace the historical and traditional concepts of the Judeo-Christian principles that this nation was founded upon?"

In Americans United for the Separation of Church and State's own press conference held virtually, several speakers rejected such sentiments.

"There is no free exercise of religion if there is no separation of church and state," said the Rev. Mara Bim, a Baptist pastor and mother of a child in Texas' public school system.

Alanah Odoms, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Louisiana chapter, described Ten Commandments laws as not being about history or faith, but "about power."

"This is not hostility to religion," Odoms said on the call. "This is respect for religion, and more importantly, it is love for our children and trust in our families to guide them."

BrieAnna Frank is a First Amendment reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected]. 

USA TODAY's coverage of First Amendment issues is funded through a collaboration between the Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. Funders do not provide editorial input.