Judge blocks 4 districts from enforcing Arkansas law requiring Ten Commandments in classroom
ARKANSAS, AUG 5 – A federal judge halted enforcement of Act 573 in four Arkansas districts, citing constitutional concerns over religious imposition on public school students, according to court ruling.
- On August 4, 2025, a federal court granted a preliminary injunction preventing Arkansas's Act 573 from being enforced in four of the state’s largest school districts.
- The injunction followed a lawsuit filed by seven Arkansas families and civil liberties groups, arguing the law violates the First Amendment's separation of church and state.
- Act 573 mandates that the Ten Commandments be prominently displayed in all classrooms and libraries within Arkansas’s public elementary and high schools starting August 5.
- Judge Brooks called Act 573 'plainly unconstitutional' and said it would coerce students to observe a religion, interfering with parents' rights; ACLU legal director John L. Williams said the ruling upheld students' rights to learn free from government-imposed faith.
- The ruling marks a limited but significant civil liberties victory amid similar laws and legal battles in Texas and Louisiana, with the legal conflict expected to reach the U.S. Supreme Court.
57 Articles
57 Articles
Judge blocks four districts from enforcing Arkansas law requiring Ten Commandments in classroom
A new Arkansas law requiring public classrooms to display the Ten Commandments cannot be enforced in a handful of the state’s largest school districts where parents brought challenges on the grounds that it violates the separation of church and state, a federal judge ruled Monday.
Judge blocks Ark. Ten Commandments rule, says it 'injects' religion into school
A federal judge on Monday blocked a new Arkansas law requiring public classrooms to display the Ten Commandments in four of the state’s school districts. The judge’s ruling comes after a lawsuit was filed that argues the measure violates the Constitution’s separation of church and state. The ruling The order came from U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks and only applies to four of Arkansas’s 237 districts. “Why would Arkansas pass an obviously…
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