Trial Over Arkansas’ Ten Commandments Monument Delayed

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A trial over Arkansas’ monument of the Ten Commandments has been postponed due to COVID-19.

In 2015 Sen. Jason Rapert (R – Conway) sponsored a law authorizing a monument of the Ten Commandments on the Arkansas State Capitol Grounds.

The monument was paid for with private funds, and it was placed on the Capitol lawn on June 27, 2017.

Less than 24 hours later, a man plowed a vehicle into the monument, completely destroying it.

The monument was rebuilt and replaced on the Capitol grounds in April of 2018.

Shortly afterward, the American Humanist Association, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, and the Satanic Temple all filed legal challenges to have the monument removed.

The lawsuit was set to go to trial this month, but due to disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic, the trial is being delayed 60 – 90 days.

As we have written before, Arkansas’ monument of the Ten Commandments is identical to one the U.S. Supreme Court ruled constitutional in Texas in 2005.

Frankly, there just 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 the laws in countries around the world.

Arkansas’ monument simply honors that legacy.

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Listen to Ken Yang on Conduit News Radio

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Family Council’s Director of Governmental Affairs Ken Yang was on Conduit News Radio with Paul Harrell this week to discuss atheist groups bullying Arkansans.

You can listen to the discussion below.

You can tune in to Conduit News Radio online weekdays from 6:00 AM – 8:00 AM, and you can hear different members of the Family Council team discuss conservative issues on the program every Tuesday morning at 7:30 AM.

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Wisconsin Atheists Bully Arkansas School District

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KFSM News reports that Pea Ridge Public Schools have suspended public prayer at school board meetings and ballgames following a complaint from the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation.

Attorneys from the atheist group reportedly sent a letter to school officials claiming that the practice was unconstitutional.

However, federal courts have upheld public prayer repeatedly — especially at public meetings.

In 2014 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that praying before city council meetings did not violate the Establishment Clause.

Courts have not been as favorable toward public prayer over loudspeakers at ballgames, but they have generally agreed that public school students and faculty do not lose their First Amendments freedoms by walking onto school property.

This isn’t the first time the Freedom From Religion Foundation has tried to bully Arkansas’ schools and officials.

This year the Freedom From Religion Foundation successfully bullied schools in Greenwood School District to stop promoting events like “See You at the Pole.”

The group also persuaded the Springdale public school to remove a cross that reportedly was displayed in the lunchroom at Linda Childers Knapp Elementary School.

In 2017 they threatened the Harrison Public School District over its policy of opening meetings with prayer. The school district ultimately decided to keep praying.

In 2017 the group demanded that Governor Hutchinson stop sharing Bible verses on his Facebook page.

In 2016 the Freedom From Religion Foundation tried to bully the City of El Dorado over its “40 Days of Prayer” campaign.

That same year the group went after Washington County election officials for using churches as polling places.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation has complained about the fact that that Arkansas’ public school students can study the Bible academically — even though it is one of the oldest texts in existence and has had a profound influence on human history.

In 2015 the group complained about public prayer at ballgames in Ashdown.

The group also threatened to sue law enforcement in Arkansas over the words “In God We Trust” being displayed on police cruisers.

In 2015 they claimed they wanted to put an anti-religion monument on the Arkansas Capitol Grounds — an idle threat that went nowhere.

In 2014 the group targeted a pizza place in Searcy that offered Sunday discounts to people who brought church bulletins into the restaurant.

They also complained about ASU football players wearing crosses to honor a deceased teammate.

It’s worth noting that across the board, groups like the Freedom From Religion Foundation threaten lawsuits; oftentimes if people stand their ground, no lawsuit is ever filed.

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