Federal judge blocks Louisiana law that requires classrooms to display Ten Commandments

BATON ROUGE, LA. — A new Louisiana law requiring the Ten Commandments to be on display in every public classroom by Jan. 1 has been temporarily blocked after a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction Tuesday.

The judge said the law is “unconstitutional on its face” and that plaintiffs are likely to win their case on claims that the law violates the First Amendment.

The ruling marks a victory for opponents of the law, who argue it is a violation of the law separation of church and state and that the poster-sized display of the Ten Commandments would isolate students, especially those who are not Christian. Supporters say that’s what the measure is not exclusively religiousbut that it has historical significance for the foundation of American law.

U.S. District Judge John W. deGravelles in Baton Rouge issued the order in an ongoing lawsuit brought by a group of parents of Louisiana public schoolchildren. They say the legislation violates the language of the First Amendment, which prohibits government establishment of religion and guarantees religious freedom.

The new law in Louisiana, a reliably Republican state that is in the Bible Belt, was passed by the state’s Republican Party-dominated legislature earlier this year.

The legislation, which has been touted by Republicans, among others former President Donald Trumpis one of the latest attempts by conservatives to achieve that integrate religion into classrooms – of Florida law allowing school districts volunteer chaplains who guide students to Oklahoma’s top education official directing public schools to do so incorporate the Bible into lessons.

In recent years, similar bills have been introduced in other states, including the United States, that would require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in classrooms TexasOklahoma and Utah. However, due to the threat of a legal battle over the constitutionality of such measures, none have come into effect.

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 “shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” The Supreme Court ruled that the law had no secular purpose, but rather served a clearly religious purpose.

Louisiana law, which applies to all public classrooms in K-12 schools and state-funded universities, requires that the Ten Commandments be displayed on a poster or framed document measuring at least 28 by 36 centimeters (11 inches by 14 inches) with the text the text is central focus and “printed in a large, easy-to-read font.”

Each poster must be paired with the four-paragraph “context statement” that describes how the Ten Commandments “were a prominent part of American public education for nearly three centuries.”

Tens of thousands of posters would likely be needed to comply with the new law. Advocates say schools are not required to spend public money on the posters, but they can be purchased through donations or groups and organizations will donate the actual posters.