NEW ORLEANS — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit heard oral arguments on Tuesday in two cases challenging state laws in Louisiana and Texas that require public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom.
The cases, Rev. Roake v. Brumley and Rabbi Nathan v. Alamo Heights Independent School District, raise fundamental questions about religious freedom and the separation of church and state guaranteed by the First Amendment.
The arguments come nearly a year after a unanimous three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit ruled that Louisiana’s House Bill 71 is “plainly unconstitutional,” finding it directly contradicted long-standing Supreme Court precedent. That decision was vacated when the full court agreed to rehear the case.
Federal courts in Texas have likewise issued multiple preliminary injunctions blocking enforcement of Senate Bill 10, concluding that the law violates students’ First Amendment rights by forcing government-endorsed religious scripture on public-school children.
The plaintiffs in both states are multifaith and nonreligious families who argue that the displays are unconstitutional.
“Public schools are meant to educate, not evangelize,” said Daniel Mach, director of the ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief. “When the government mandates the display of a specific religious text in every classroom, it crosses a constitutional line by pressuring students and families to conform to the state’s preferred religious doctrine.
“The First Amendment protects the freedom of every family to decide matters of faith for themselves, and today’s arguments underscore why we must uphold that principle in our public schools.”
The Texas plaintiffs in Rabbi Nathan v. Alamo Heights Independent School District are represented by the ACLU, ACLU of Texas, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and the Freedom From Religion Foundation, with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP serving as pro bono counsel.
The Louisiana plaintiffs in Roake v. Brumley are represented by the ACLU, ACLU of Louisiana, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and the Freedom From Religion Foundation, with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP serving as pro bono counsel.
