Louisiana: Public School Classrooms Required By Law To Display 'The Ten Commandments' By 2025

Louisiana has become the first state in the U.S. to require the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom after a bill was signed into law by GOP Governor Jeff Landry on Wednesday. 

The law mandates that a poster-sized display of the Ten Commandments in “large, easily readable font” be required in all public classrooms, from kindergarten all the way up to state-funded universities. 

(Photo via: Lifehopeandtruth.com)

However, critics of the bill passing have questioned the law’s constitutionality and cited “separation of church and state,” warning that lawsuits will most likely follow. 

Meanwhile, supporters of the new law argue that the measure is not only beneficial to one’s life decisions, but that it will be in place in order to display historical significance. Supporters maintain that the Ten Commandments are “foundational documents of our state and national government.”

“The posters, 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,” according to AP News.

The posters would also purportedly be “funded through donations,” and state funds would not be used to implement the mandate. 

Additionally, the law “authorizes” but does not require the display of the Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence, and the Northwest Ordinance in K-12 public schools.

Detractors argue that the law prevents students from receiving an equal education and will keep children who have different beliefs from “feeling safe” or comfortable at school, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and the Freedom from Religion Foundation in a joint statement released on Wednesday.

“Even among those who may believe in some version of the Ten Commandments, the particular text that they adhere to can differ by religious denomination or tradition. The government should not be taking sides in this theological debate,” the groups said in their joint statement.

Meanwhile, similar bills involving the Ten Commandments being displayed in classrooms have been proposed in states like Oklahoma, Texas, and Utah. Due to legal threats, other “blue” states have not been able to pass such a measure. 

The GOP in “The Pelican State” has a two-thirds supermajority in the Legislature, and Republicans hold every statewide elected position. 

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