Public schools in Louisiana are now required to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms.
The Republican-bill signed into law by Gov. Jeff Landry (R) requires that all public classrooms, from kindergarten to state-funded universities in the state, display the Ten Commandments in “large, easily readable font” in classrooms by the beginning of 2025.
The posters must also contain a four-paragraph statement saying the Ten Commandments “were a prominent part of American public education for almost three centuries.”
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has already said that it plans to sue, arguing the law violates the First Amendment.
“We are preparing a lawsuit to challenge H.B. 71. The law violates the separation of church and state and is blatantly unconstitutional. 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. Politicians have no business imposing their preferred religious doctrine on students and families in public schools,” the ACLU said.
Landry said recently that he is looking for a legal fight after he signed the bill into law.
“I’m going home to sign a bill that places the Ten Commandments in public classrooms,” he said during a recent GOP fundraiser in Tennessee. “I can’t wait to be sued.”
In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court shot down a similar Kentucky law, ruling that it violated the establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution.
Similar bills requiring the Ten Commandments be displayed in public school classrooms have been proposed in other states including Texas, Oklahoma and Utah.
