A federal judge has temporarily stopped Arkansas from enforcing a new state law that would have required public schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms. This pause, which came after a lawsuit from a group of families with different religious beliefs, means the law cannot go into effect until the legal process is finished.
The law, officially called Act 573, was signed earlier this year by Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders. According to Fox News, it requires that the Ten Commandments be displayed in a prominent place in every public school classroom and library.
The recent decision, made by U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks, only affects four school districts in northwest Arkansas: Fayetteville, Bentonville, Siloam Springs, and Springdale. Even though the ruling is limited, Judge Brooks was very critical of the law. In his 35-page decision, he asked, “Why would Arkansas pass an obviously unconstitutional law? Most likely because the state is part of a coordinated strategy among several states to inject Christian religious doctrine into public-school classrooms. Act 573 is not neutral with respect to religion.”
Judge throws out Huckabee’s unconstitional law attempt
The families are represented by several organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, and the Freedom from Religion Foundation. They argued that the law violated their religious freedom and their rights as parents.
The lawsuit filed by the families argues that forcing schools to put up the Ten Commandments everywhere, where students cannot avoid seeing them, puts unconstitutional pressure on students to follow and respect a specific religion.
Federal judge stops Ten Commandments law from taking effect pending lawsuit.
— The Indoctrinatrix (@gelderbailey) August 5, 2025
Everyone always knew this law was unconstitutional and wouldn’t happen. Didn’t matter. Our blowhard Christian nationalist legislature just wanted to show out. https://t.co/KLfFwyb14i
The lawsuit also claims that this sends a harmful message to students who do not follow the Ten Commandments, or who follow a different version than the one required by the law, making them feel like they do not belong in their own schools. The lawsuit further argues that this favoritism toward one religion makes students hesitant to express their own religious beliefs if they are different from those supported by the state.
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin, whose job was to defend the law, said he is reviewing the decision and considering his legal options. Meanwhile, Holly Bailey, the Executive Director of the ACLU of Arkansas, said through a spokesperson that based on this ruling and existing law, all school districts should avoid posting the Ten Commandments in classrooms.
What’s happening in Arkansas is not unique. Similar legal fights are happening in other states with the same kind of laws. In Texas, a group of families and religious leaders sued shortly after a similar law was passed. In Louisiana, the first state to require the Ten Commandments in classrooms, a panel of three appeals court judges ruled the law unconstitutional.
The temporary block in Arkansas is just one part of this nationwide fight over whether religious texts should be displayed in public schools. The judge’s strong words and clear criticism of the law’s constitutionality add important support to the legal arguments against such laws, as the separation of church and state becomes blurry.
