BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana has become the first state to require that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom under a bill signed into law by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry on Wednesday.
The GOP-drafted legislation mandates that a poster-sized display of the Ten Commandments in “large, easily readable font” be required in all public classrooms, from kindergarten to state-funded universities. Although the bill did not receive final approval from Landry, the time for gubernatorial action — to sign or veto the bill — has lapsed.
Opponents question the law’s constitutionality, warning that lawsuits are likely to follow. Proponents say the purpose of the measure is not solely religious, but that it has historical significance. In the law’s language, the Ten Commandments are described as “foundational documents of our state and national government.”
The displays, which will be paired with a four-paragraph “context statement” describing how the Ten Commandments “were a prominent part of American public education for almost three centuries,” must be in place in classrooms by the start of 2025.
The posters would be paid for through donations. State funds will not be used to implement the mandate, based on language in the legislation.
The law also “authorizes” — but does not require — the display of the Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence and the Northwest Ordinance in K-12 public schools.
Similar bills requiring the Ten Commandments be displayed in classrooms have been proposed in other states including Texas, Oklahoma and Utah. However, with threats of legal battles over the constitutionality of such measures, no state besides Louisiana has had success in making the bills law.
Legal battles over the display of the Ten Commandments in classrooms are not new.
In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a similar Kentucky law was unconstitutional and violated the establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution, which says Congress can “make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” The high court found that the law had no secular purpose but rather served a plainly religious purpose.
Louisiana’s controversial law, in a state ensconced in the Bible Belt, comes during a new era of conservative leadership in the state under Landry, who replaced two-term Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards in January.
The GOP also has a two-thirds supermajority in the Legislature, and Republicans hold every statewide elected position, paving the way for lawmakers to push through a conservative agenda during the legislative session that concluded earlier this month.
Hopefully the Satanic Temple goes hard on this one. I want statues of Baphomet in ever school.
THOU SHALL NOT KILL
Remind me again, how many people did the state of Louisiana execute last year?
THOU SHALL NOT KILL
*unless it’s people we deem as subhuman then supply-side jesus says “kill 'em all!!”
Yeah so it turns out that God actually meant to write thou shalt not commit premeditated homicide as established under US Penal code ####
unless your crossing state lines to kill protesters, then murder doesn’t apply.
Reading through them really brings it home that I’ve never met a real Christian.
that’s old testament even. under new testament, unless you are selling your earthly possesions to help the poor, you are not exactly following the christ. Poor fisherman in palestine had more faith in christ than all those theocrats. Also charging interest is a sin, good luck with that in usa
Eating shellfish is mentioned immediatly after and on the same level as homesexuality.
Then wearing clothing of mixed fabrics was right after that.
Don’t even get me started on the period shacks.
What does it say about homosexuality?
Are you thinking about a man wearing the clothes of a woman and vice versa for that is an abomination?
first amendment is just so much wet paper. political power grows out of the barrel of a gun
France had the right idea lowkey. People have the right to freedom FROM religion
their secularism’s been pared down to a chauvinistic tool, proud history but toothless unless its bullying muslims.
need that hardcore state atheism soviet style, even China does not go far enough
need that hardcore state atheism soviet style
You mean the type that repressed religious people even if their practices were pro-soviet, and then everyone just pretended to be atheists then immediately praised Jeebus after 1991 because they never actually ditched their beliefs?
This is blatantly unconstitutional,not that that actually has any real meaning, but either way I can’t wait to troll some “small c conservatives” with this.
Even with the conservative tilt of the court, there’s no way this survives a legal challenge. It just opens up too many cans of worms to allow any religion’s holy text to be displayed on public. Cultural conservatives balk at the idea of opening that up to Jews, Muslims, etc., and the true powers that be see the religious stuff as bread and circuses for the rubes.
