The case could play a central role in the national debate over whether the laws violate the First Amendment’s establishment clause, which prohibits governments from endorsing or promoting a particular religion.
The lawsuit claims the Education Department violated the First Amendment by forcing partisan language into workers’ out-of-office emails during the shutdown. It names the Department of Education and Secretary Linda McMahon as defendants.
The ruling halts school districts from implementing the measure, which mandated a 16-by-20-inch poster or framed copy of a specific English version of the Ten Commandments in every classroom.
Outside advocates believe supporters of laws in Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas are actively trying to get the cases before the Supreme Court. In the meantime, however, those supporters are consistently suffering legal losses, including in some of the most conservative courts in the country.
A sweeping U.S. Supreme Court interpretation recognizes a First Amendment right to opt out of classroom lessons that pose a "very real threat of undermining" sincerely held religious beliefs. The ruling has school districts and their attorneys scrambling to review curricula and refine protocols for excusing students from certain material.
In a 6-3 vote, the court backed the parents' claim that the Montgomery County Board of Education's decision not to allow an opt-out option for their children violated their religious rights under the Constitution's First Amendment, which protects religious expression.
