Court Battle Brews Over Arkansas’ Ten Commandments Law

On Wednesday the ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of seven families in Northwest Arkansas to block a new state law placing the Ten Commandments in schools and public buildings across the state.

Some years ago Arkansas passed a law requiring a copy of the national motto, “In God We Trust” to be displayed in public schools and other public buildings.

Act 573 of 2025 by Sen. Jim Dotson (R — Bentonville) and Rep. Alyssa Brown (R — Heber Springs) requires a historical copy of the Ten Commandments to be displayed as well.

Over the years, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that items that are important to our nation’s history — like the Ten Commandments or the national motto — may be honored and recognized publicly without running afoul of the First Amendment.

The Ten Commandments are one of the earliest examples of the rule of law in human history, and they have had a profound impact in shaping America’s concept of the rule of law as well.

Act 573 simply recognizes their significance. The measure received strong support in the Arkansas Legislature earlier this year, and the governor signed it into law on April 14. Act 573 is slated to take effect later this summer.

However, on Wednesday the ACLU sued the Fayetteville School District, the Springdale School District, the Bentonville School District, and the Siloam Springs School District to block Act 573.

The ACLU’s lawsuit claims,

“Permanently posting the Ten Commandments in every classroom and library—rendering them unavoidable—unconstitutionally pressures students into religious observance, veneration, and adoption of the state’s favored religious scripture. It also sends the harmful and religiously divisive message that students who do not subscribe to the Ten Commandments—or, more precisely, to the specific version of the Ten Commandments that Act 573 requires schools to display—do not belong in their own school community and pressures them to refrain from expressing any faith practices or beliefs that are not aligned with the state’s religious preferences.”

Hanging a copy of the Ten Commandments on the wall of a school or library does not “pressure” anyone, and it certainly is not “harmful” or “divisive.”

Besides being culturally and historically significant, copies of the Ten Commandments have often appeared in artwork at courthouses and similar locations around the country.

During her testimony in support of Act 573 last April, Rep. Alyssa Brown noted that the U.S. Supreme Court uses a “longstanding history and tradition test” to decide if it is constitutional to display something like a copy of the Ten Commandments. Rep. Brown said “the Ten Commandments without a doubt will pass this longstanding history and tradition test.”

We believe our federal courts ultimately will agree and uphold Act 573 as constitutional.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Seven Years Later, Still No End in Sight for Lawsuit Over Arkansas’ Ten Commandments Monument

Above: Former Sen. Jason Rapert and then-Rep. Kim Hammer unveil Arkansas’ monument commemorating the Ten Commandments in this file photo from 2018. Atheist organizations filed a lawsuit to have the monument removed, but the case has remained in limbo for seven years.

Today marks the seventh anniversary of a lawsuit over Arkansas’ monument of the Ten Commandments on the state capitol lawn — and there does not seem to be any end in sight.

A decade ago, the Arkansas Legislature passed Act 1231 of 2015 by former Sen. Jason Rapert and then-Rep. Kim Hammer.

Act 1231 authorized placement of a privately funded monument of the Ten Commandments on the Arkansas Capitol Building grounds. Forty state legislators co-sponsored Act 1231. It received strong, bipartisan support, and former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson signed Act 1231 into law.

Arkansas’ monument of the Ten Commandments — which is identical to one the U.S. Supreme Court ruled constitutional at the capitol building in Texas — was unveiled in 2018. But it did not take long for atheist groups like the Freedom From Religion Foundation and the Satanic Temple to file a federal lawsuit to have it removed.

The case began May 23, 2018, and it originally was set to go to trial in July of 2020. But U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker postponed the trial due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, both sides in the lawsuit have asked Judge Baker to resolve the case, but the case remains in legal limbo.

As we have said many times, there shouldn’t be anything controversial about a monument honoring the significance of the Ten Commandments.

Historians have long recognized the Ten Commandments as one of the earliest examples of the rule of law in human history, and they have helped shape philosophy and laws in countries around the world.

That’s why the Ten Commandments traditionally has appeared in artwork at courthouses and similar locations. In fact, last month Arkansas passed a law to place posters of the Ten Commandments in public schools and public buildings across the state.

Arkansas’ monument of the Ten Commandments commemorates their historical and cultural legacy. With that in mind, we believe our federal courts eventually will resolve this lawsuit and uphold Arkansas’ Ten Commandments monument as constitutional.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Arkansas Legislature Passes Law Placing Ten Commandments in Public Schools and Buildings

On Monday the Arkansas Legislature passed a law to place a poster of the Ten Commandments in public schools and public buildings.

Current law requires a copy of the national motto, “In God We Trust” to be displayed in public schools and other public buildings.

S.B. 433 by Sen. Jim Dotson (R — Bentonville) and Rep. Alyssa Brown (R — Heber Springs) requires a historical copy of the Ten Commandments to be displayed as well.

Over the years, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that items that are important to our nation’s history — like the Ten Commandments or the national motto — may be honored and recognized publicly without running afoul of the First Amendment. The Ten Commandments are one of the earliest examples of the rule of law in human history, and they have had a profound impact in shaping America’s concept of the rule of law as well.

S.B. 433 will make sure Arkansas continues that longstanding tradition of recognizing the importance of the Ten Commandments. The bill already passed the Arkansas Senate. It now goes to Gov. Sanders to be signed into law.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.