Key vote moves Texas closer to displaying the Ten Commandments in public schools

USA Today

2 days ago

Key vote moves Texas closer to displaying the Ten Commandments in public schools
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Texas school board approves Bible-infused curriculum
The vote in Texas to allow Bible stories in public school course materials is part of a trend across the region sometimes dubbed the Bible Belt.
The Texas House of Representatives advanced a bill requiring all public schools in the state to display the Ten Commandments in the classroom, the latest effort by conservative-led states to integrate religion into public education.
The Republican-controlled House voted 82-46 to approve a version of Senate Bill 10 on May 25 after about a week of debate and several attempts by Democratic lawmakers to amend the bill to require other religious texts from Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism be posted in classrooms. Those amendments were rejected.
The bill was passed with an amendment to clarify that the state, instead of schools or school districts, will defend and pay for any legal challenges to the law.
The legislation likely faces legal action as critics have raised concerns over its potential violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, which prohibits public schools from providing religious instruction" in a devotional manner or prescribing "prayers to be recited by students or by school authorities." Supporters of the bill have argued that the Ten Commandments are a foundational aspect of U.S. history, according to The Texas Tribune.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to sign the measure, which would take effect in September. The state Senate passed the bill in March with a 20-11 vote.
The bill would require all public classrooms to display a poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments that is at least 16 inches wide and 20 inches tall. No school would be exempt from the bill, and schools that do not post the Christian doctrine would be required to "accept any offer of a privately donated poster or framed copy."
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Republican-led states push for religion in public schools
Conservative lawmakers across the country have been leading an effort to spread religious teachings to public school classrooms, including introducing the Bible into reading lessons and requiring classrooms to post the Ten Commandments.
In states where evangelical Christians make up a sizable portion of constituents, incorporating Bible teachings into the curriculum has gained traction, Ira C. Lupu, a professor at George Washington University School of Law who has written on religion in the First Amendment, previously told USA TODAY.
In Louisiana, Republican Gov. Jeff Landry signed a law in June 2024 directing every public classroom to display the Ten Commandments. The law was later blocked by a federal judge who declared it unconstitutional, and was also challenged by parents and several civil rights groups.
A similar law was recently passed in Arkansas, Little Rock Public Radio reported in April. In November 2024, Texas officials proposed a curriculum incorporating teachings from the Bible in schools.
In July 2024, Oklahoma's top education official ordered public schools to teach the Bible, which large state school districts have largely ignored. Despite the state's Republican-controlled Legislature's rejection of his $3 million request to fund the effort, state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters has insisted that classrooms would all have Bibles by fall 2025.
School administrators and civil rights advocates have been pushing back, saying these mandates violate students' rights.
'Courts have repeatedly ruled that it is unconstitutional for public schools to coerce anyone to support or participate in religion or its exercise," Megan Lambert, legal director of the ACLU of Oklahoma, said in a statement in response to Walters' directive last year.
Contributing: Kayla Jimenez, USA TODAY; Murray Evans, The Oklahoman