Louisiana Mandates Ten Commandments in Classrooms, Faces Immediate Legal Challenge
Baton Rouge, La. — Louisiana has become the first state to mandate the display of the Ten Commandments in every public school and university classroom. Governor Jeff Landry signed House Bill 71 into law on Wednesday at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic School, along with several other education-focused measures, including an education savings account bill.
State GOP leaders champion the new law as a means to reintroduce historical, cultural, and traditional elements into the educational environment. However, civil rights organizations argue it breaches the constitutional separation of church and state.
The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Louisiana, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and the Freedom from Religion Foundation announced plans to sue the state. They assert that the law violates Supreme Court precedent and the First Amendment, emphasizing that government should not impose religious beliefs on individuals.
“The First Amendment promises that we all get to decide for ourselves what religious beliefs, if any, to hold and practice, without pressure from the government,” the groups stated. “Politicians have no business imposing their preferred religious doctrine on students and families in public schools.”
House Bill 71 mandates that all classrooms from kindergarten through college display a large, readable poster or framed document of the Ten Commandments. Anticipating legal challenges, lawmakers included references to past court rulings permitting such displays in public spaces, added a context statement to accompany the Commandments, and allowed schools to also display other historical documents like the Declaration of Independence.
Governor Landry has openly welcomed the impending legal battle, calling the bill a conservative triumph in the culture wars during a keynote speech at a Republican fundraiser in Tennessee. “I can't wait to be sued,” he remarked.
Similar legislative efforts in GOP-led states like Texas and Oklahoma have failed to pass until now.
