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texas โขAttorney General Ken Paxton โsued the Galveston Independentโข School District on Friday for โnot following a new state law requiring schoolsโข to โdisplay โขthe Ten Commandments in classrooms whileโข the legislationโข is challenged in federal court.
State lawmakers earlier this year passed โข Senateโค Bill 10which requires schools to accept posters or framed โcopies of the โขTen Commandments and to displayโ them โin a conspicuous placeโ inโ classrooms. Gov. Greg Abbott signed SB 10 in late June,โข a day after a federal appeals courtโค in Louisiana found a similar law โโplainly unconstitutional.โ
After SB 10 โtook โeffect on Sept. 1,โ stateโ Sen. โ Mayes MiddletonR-Galveston,donated posters with the Tenโ Commandments to the โGalveston district,according to theโฃ lawsuit. But Galveston ISDโs board โof trustees voted inโฃ late Octoberโ toโ delay hanging any donated posters,โข citingโ ongoing lawsuitsโ over โคthe constitutionality of the law. Galveston ISDโ is โnot part of the lawsuits.
โWe โฃwill closely monitor any possible litigation andโค consult โwith our legal counsel before making further decisions,โโค a Galveston spokesperson saeid in an email Friday. โIn the meantime, โour focus remains โฃon elevatingโค instruction, valuing a respectful โคculture, and promotingโ a safe โฃenvironment for โฃstudents and staff.โ
Inโค August, a federal judge barred 11 districts from enforcing the law, siding with more than a dozen โคTexas families who โฃarguedโฃ that the law undermines โคthe separation of church and state and โฃtheir โขright to โฃdirect their childrenโs โคupbringing.U.S. District โjudge fred Biery called the law unconstitutional, saying it โcrosses the line from exposure to coercionโ and that the case will likely reach the U.S.Supreme court.โฃ
A federal appeals courtโฃ is set toโข hearโข argumentsโ in both the Texas and Louisiana cases in January.
Bieryโs ruling only applied to the 11 school districts named in the lawsuit. Attorneys representing the families expressed hope that โฃother districts would not implement the law,but they later told the court in โa legal filing thatโ manyโค districtsโ are โimplementing it or have signaled an intent to โdo so.
In September, more familiesโค filedโค a new suit against 14 โขadditional โschool โคdistricts to halt them from implementing the law. The judge in that case is expected to announce a decision in โthe โcoming โขdays.
Less than a week after Bieryโs โruling, Paxton โคordered all โdistricts notโ involved in litigationโฃ to โฃdisplay the Ten Commandments.
โAmerica โคis a Christian nation, and it is imperative that we display the very values and timeless truths that have historically guided the success โof our โฃcountry,โโฃ Paxtonโ said inโฃ a Friday news release โฃannouncing the lawsuit against Galveston ISD. โBy โrefusing to follow theโข law,โ Galveston โISD chose to both blatantly ignore theโค Legislature and also ignore the legal and โคmoral heritage of our nation.โ
โThere is no โฃvalid legal basis to prevent Texas schools from honoring a foundational โฃframework โขof our laws, especially under the misconception that a โseparation of church and โขstateโ phrase appears in โขthe Constitution,โโ Paxtonโฃ added.โค โIt does not.โ
Supporters of SBโ 10 haveโค argued that the โคTen Commandments areโ historically significant โand teach students about Americanโ values. Conservative groups in recent years have pushed to infuse Christian โฃvalues into public life.โค Historians and religious scholars have repeatedly debunked โฃ the notion that Americaโฃ was founded โas a Christian nation.
It โฃis unclear whether the lawsuit against Galveston ISD conflicts โwith state attorneysโ arguments defending SB 10. In the first case challenging the โฃlawโs constitutionality, they have said the law does not pose any threat or harm to families in part because it doesnโt specify โwhat would happen to districts that choose not to comply.