Judge Blocks 10 Commandments from Being Posted in Arkansas School District
Elizabeth Delaney
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By Elizabeth Delaney, Crosswalk.com
The battle to have the 10 Commandments displayed in schools is heating up again, with Arkansas presently being on the front lines. There’s been a back and forth on this ever since Arkansas passed a law in April of 2025 that mandated all school districts to display a copy of the 10 Commandments in classrooms. Then last week, a federal court ruled that the state’s mandate, Act 573, was a violation of the First Amendment, according to KTHV.
Seven Arkansas Families Complain about 10 Commandments
Seven Arkansas families with children in the Arkansas public school system filed the lawsuit only two months after Act 573 had passed. They were represented by the Arkansas ACLU, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Freedom from Religion Foundation, and attorneys with the Simpson Thacher & Bartlett law firm. The religious affiliations claimed by the families included Jewish, Unitarian Universalist, Humanist, agnostic, atheist, and nonreligious, according to the Arkansas Advocate.
The Arkansas ACLU gave a positive nod to the ruling, claiming that the 10 Commandments are a “religious doctrine” and that public schools are forcing a religious belief system onto students when schools display the 10 Commandments. They further argued in a social media post picked up by KTHV that, “the government must remain neutral on matters of faith, and every student deserves to learn in a classroom free from religious coercion.”
Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders Responds to Ruling
“In Arkansas, we do in fact believe that murder is wrong and stealing is bad,” Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement picked up by the Arkansas Advocate. “It is entirely appropriate to display the Ten Commandments – the basis of all Western law and morality – as a reminder to students, state employees, and every Arkansan who enters a government building, and I look forward to appealing this suit and defending our state’s values.”
Sanders originally signed the 10 Commandments mandate into law.
‘Pastors on Patrol’ uses Private Funds for 10 Commandment Posters
One loophole regarding getting the 10 Commandments displayed in Arkansas public schools is connected to whether the funding for the posters was with private or public funds. A group called “Pastors on Patrol’ made a private donation for posters displaying the 10 Commandments, and distributed the posters to every school in Arkansas’ Jefferson County.
We carried those Ten Commandments to the schools, the teachers were excited, the principals were excited. The kids were excited," Reverend Jesse Turner, president of the Pine Bluff Faith Coalition Ministerial Alliance and Pastors on Patrol member, told KATV.
“The killings and the murders that we have, I mean, we’ve tried everything else. So why not try the Word? We’re tired of our sons getting murdered in the streets,” Yolanda Pitts, pastor of Turning Point International Outreach Ministries, told KATV.
Other states that are battling to have the 10 Commandments displayed in public school classrooms include Louisiana and Texas.
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Elizabeth Delaney has been a freelance content writer for over 20 years and has enjoyed having her prose published in both the non-fiction and fiction markets. She has written various types of content, including Christian articles, healthy lifestyle, blog posts, business topics, news articles, product descriptions, and some fiction. She is also a singer-songwriter-musician. When she is not busy with writing or music, she enjoys spending time with friends or family and doing fun social activities such as hiking, swing dancing, concerts, and other activities.
