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Lawsuits filed in three states by Unitarian Universalists and others have successfully challenged new laws that require public schools to post the Ten Commandments in their classrooms.
So far, federal courts have sided with the plaintiffs in all three cases, ruling that the laws violate the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. But the highly controversial issue is far from settled, and it may well end up before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Here’s a look at the three cases:
Louisiana
Rev. Darcy Roake, a UU minister who lives with her family in New Orleans, is the lead plaintiff in Rev. Roake v. Brumley, a lawsuit filed by a multifaith group of nine Louisiana families with children in public schools. The plaintiffs argue that Louisiana House Bill 71, signed into law in June 2024, violates the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause, which requires a separation between church and state. The new law mandates that a version of the Ten Commandments associated with Protestant denominations be permanently posted in every public classroom in the state.
In November 2024, a federal district court issued an injunction against the law, ruling it was unconstitutional. On June 20, 2025, three judges on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. Louisiana is asking the entire appeals court to rehear the case.
In a statement after the appeals court decision, Roake said, “We are grateful for this decision, which honors the religious diversity and religious-freedom rights of public school families across Louisiana. As an interfaith family, we believe that our children should receive their religious education at home and within our faith communities, not from government officials.” The plaintiffs 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.
Arkansas
In June 2025, a multifaith group of seven families in Arkansas, including Unitarian Universalists, filed a lawsuit, Stinson v. Fayetteville School District No. 1, against Arkansas Act 573 of 2025, which requires a version of the Ten Commandments associated with Protestant faiths to be displayed in school classrooms and libraries. The plaintiffs argue the law violates the First Amendment by creating a religiously coercive school environment and interfering with families’ rights to direct their children’s religious upbringing.
In August, a federal judge agreed and temporarily blocked its implementation in the four school districts that are defendants. On September 12, the judge extended the injunction to a fifth school district after parents there asked to be added to the Stinson lawsuit. The plaintiffs are represented by the ACLU, the ACLU of Arkansas, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Freedom from Religion Foundation, and Simpson Thacher.
Texas
Unitarian Universalists are among the plaintiffs who in July filed a lawsuit, Rabbi Nathan v. Alamo Heights Independent School District, asserting that Senate Bill 10 in Texas violates First Amendment protections for the separation of church and state and the right to free religious exercise. The law, which was due to go into effect on September 1, requires all public elementary and secondary schools to display a Protestant version of the Ten Commandments in every classroom.
The plaintiffs are a group of parents who are Jewish, Christian, UU, Hindu, or nonreligious. On August 10, a federal judge issued an injunction preventing the school district from implementing the law. The plaintiffs are represented by the ACLU, the ACLU of Texas, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Freedom from Religion Foundation, and Simpson Thacher.