A federal judge appointed by former President Barack Obama has blocked an Arkansas law that would require the Ten Commandments be displayed at public schools.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks issued a preliminary injunction Monday, stating that Act 573, which was set to take effect Tuesday, was "plainly unconstitutional," violating the establishment and free exercise clauses of the First Amendment.
"Why would Arkansas pass an obviously unconstitutional law?" Brooks wrote in a 36-page ruling. "Most likely because the State is part of a coordinated strategy among several states to inject Christian religious doctrine into public-school classrooms.
"These states view the past decade of rulings by the Supreme Court on religious displays in public spaces as a signal that the Court would be open to revisiting its precedent on religious displays in the public school context."
The legislation, signed into law by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders in April, mandates the display of the Ten Commandments and "In God We Trust," the U.S. motto, in Arkansas classrooms and public buildings maintained or operated with taxpayer funds.
"In Arkansas, we recognize basic truths like murder is wrong," Sanders wrote Tuesday in a post on X. "The Ten Commandments are foundational to Western law and morality, and they should be displayed in public places. My administration will appeal this ruling and win."
The legislation had broad support in both chambers of the Republican-controlled General Assembly, with the House voting 71-20 and the Senate 27-4 to approve the bill. Funding for the displays must be acquired through private donations, and the law also details the specific wording and size of the displays.
The lawsuit was filed in June in the Western District of Arkansas by seven families with children in public schools. They were represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and its Arkansas branch, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Freedom from Religion Foundation, and the Simpson Thacher & Bartlett law firm.
"Forty-five years ago, the Supreme Court struck down a Ten Commandments law nearly identical to the one the Arkansas General Assembly passed earlier this year," Brooks wrote, referring to Stone v. Graham, in which the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in 1980 against a similar Kentucky statute. "That precedent remains binding on this Court and renders Arkansas Act 573 plainly unconstitutional."
John Williams, legal director for the ACLU of Arkansas, said in a statement Monday that the "ruling is a victory for Arkansas families and for the First Amendment.”
"The court saw through this attempt to impose religious doctrine in public schools and upheld every student's right to learn free from government-imposed faith," Williams said. "We're proud to stand with our clients — families of many different backgrounds — who simply want their kids to get an education."
Texas recently became the third state in two years, following Louisiana and Arkansas, to pass a law requiring Ten Commandments displays in public school classrooms. Soon after — like the other states — it was sued over the law by a group of families from multiple religious backgrounds who believe that the law violates the First Amendment. Although federal judges blocked the Louisiana and Arkansas laws, a judge has yet to rule in the Texas case.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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