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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the Galveston Independent School District on Friday for not following a new state law requiring schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms while the legislation is challenged in federal court.
State lawmakers earlier this year passed Senate Bill 10, which requires schools to accept posters or framed copies of the Ten Commandments and to display them “in a conspicuous place” in classrooms. Gov. Greg Abbott signed SB 10 in late June, a day after a federal appeals court in Louisiana found a similar law “plainly unconstitutional.”
After SB 10 took effect on Sept. 1, state Sen. Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston, donated posters with the Ten Commandments to the Galveston district, according to the lawsuit. But Galveston ISD’s board of trustees voted in late October to delay hanging any donated posters, citing ongoing lawsuits over the constitutionality of the law. Galveston ISD is not part of the lawsuits.
“We will closely monitor any possible litigation and consult with our legal counsel before making further decisions,” a Galveston spokesperson said in an email Friday. “In the meantime, our focus remains on elevating instruction, valuing a respectful culture, and promoting a safe environment for students and staff.”
In August, a federal judge barred 11 districts from enforcing the law, siding with more than a dozen Texas families who argued that the law undermines the separation of church and state and their right to direct their children’s upbringing. U.S. District Judge Fred Biery called the law unconstitutional, saying it “crosses the line from exposure to coercion” and that the case will likely reach the U.S. Supreme Court.
A federal appeals court is set to hear arguments in both the Texas and Louisiana cases in January.
Biery’s ruling only applied to the 11 school districts named in the lawsuit. Attorneys representing the families expressed hope that other districts would not implement the law, but they later told the court in a legal filing that many districts are implementing it or have signaled an intent to do so.
In September, more families filed a new suit against 14 additional school districts to halt them from implementing the law. The judge in that case is expected to announce a decision in the coming days.
Less than a week after Biery’s ruling, Paxton ordered all districts not involved in litigation to display the Ten Commandments.
“America is a Christian nation, and it is imperative that we display the very values and timeless truths that have historically guided the success of our country,” Paxton said in a Friday news release announcing the lawsuit against Galveston ISD. “By refusing to follow the law, Galveston ISD chose to both blatantly ignore the Legislature and also ignore the legal and moral heritage of our nation.”
“There is no valid legal basis to prevent Texas schools from honoring a foundational framework of our laws, especially under the misconception that a ‘separation of church and state’ phrase appears in the Constitution,” Paxton added. “It does not.”
Supporters of SB 10 have argued that the Ten Commandments are historically significant and teach students about American values. Conservative groups in recent years have pushed to infuse Christian values into public life. Historians and religious scholars have repeatedly debunked the notion that America was founded as a Christian nation.
It is unclear whether the lawsuit against Galveston ISD conflicts with state attorneys’ arguments defending SB 10. In the first case challenging the law’s constitutionality, they have said the law does not pose any threat or harm to families in part because it doesn’t specify what would happen to districts that choose not to comply.