FFRF Action Fund’s “Theocrat of the Week” is Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for signing a bill over the weekend requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in all public school classrooms.
Texas joins Louisiana and Arkansas in efforts to mandate the Christian display in public school classrooms, although both state laws have faced federal court roadblocks. Texas is now the largest state in the nation to attempt the implementation of such a mandate. As it stands, the law is set to take effect on Sept. 1. Louisiana’s Ten Commandments law has been declared unconstitutional twice by federal courts, including a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which also hears cases from Texas.
Last Saturday, Abbott announced that he signed Senate Bill 10, the Ten Commandments bill, into law. Abbott highlighted it in a press release as one of the “16 critical pieces of legislation” that he signed at the end of Texas’ legislative session. Abbott is quoted in the press release: “Texas is where the American dream lives. Today, I signed critical legislation passed in the 89th Regular Legislative Session that protects the safety of Texans and safeguards the individual freedoms that our great state was founded on. Working with the Texas Legislature, we will keep Texas the best place to live, work, and raise a family.”
Senate Bill 10 mandates that all public schools display a 16-by-20-inch poster or framed copy of a specific version of the Ten Commandments in classrooms, chosen by Texas lawmakers and linked to Protestant faiths, despite the many translations and interpretations that differ across denominations. The display will be required to be “in a conspicuous place in each classroom.” Texas serves approximately 6 million public school students attending over 9,000 schools.
Before Abbott signed the bill into law, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, FFRF Action Fund’s parent organization, announced that it will be part of a coalition suing Texas over the law. FFRF joins the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the ACLU of Texas and Americans United for Separation of Church and State in the lawsuit.
While serving as Texas attorney general in 2005, Abbott successfully argued before the U.S. Supreme Court that the state could keep a Ten Commandments monument on the grounds of the Texas Capitol. Abbott recently posted on X: “Signed a law to put the Ten Commandments in Texas classrooms. Faith and freedom are the foundation of our nation. If anyone sues, we’ll win that battle. Just like when I defended the Ten Commandments Monument on Texas Capitol grounds at SCOTUS.”
Abbott is trying to religiously coerce Texas students by requiring the display of a specific interpretation of Christian doctrine. The governor continues an ongoing trend of the religious right attempting to increase the role of religion, specifically Christianity, in secular public education across the country, solidifying his “Theocrat” title.
FFRF Action Fund is a 501(c)(4) organization that develops and advocates for legislation, regulations and government programs to preserve the constitutional principle of separation between state and church. It also advocates for the rights and views of nonbelievers, endorses candidates for political office, and publicizes the views of elected officials concerning religious liberty issues.