Federal Judge Blocks Louisiana Law Requiring Ten Commandments in Classrooms

A federal judge in Louisiana blocked a state law on Tuesday that would have required the display of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom. The legislation, passed by state lawmakers this year, has been closely watched, because Louisiana was the first state to enact this kind of mandate in more than 40 years.

The decision was a setback for supporters of the measure, but not an unexpected one: Proponents have braced themselves for pushback and, in many ways, have invited a lengthy legal fight, as part of a larger effort by conservative Christian groups to amplify public expressions of faith.

John W. deGravelles, a U.S. District Court judge appointed to the bench by President Barack Obama, found that the law, which was scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, was unconstitutional. He forbade the state from enforcing it.

In his decision, Judge deGravelles wrote that the law was “coercive to students, and, for all practical purposes, they cannot opt out of viewing the Ten Commandments when they are displayed in every classroom, every day of the year, every year of their education.”

He added: “There are any number of ways that the state could advance an alleged interest in educating students about the Ten Commandments that would be less burdensome.”

Attorney General Liz Murrill of Louisiana, a Republican, said in a statement that she strongly disagreed with the judge’s decision and would immediately appeal it. Supporters of the bill expect a friendlier reception from the appeals court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which is considered to be one of the nation’s most conservative courts.

The measure in Louisiana requires that posters containing the Commandments be displayed in each classroom of every public elementary, middle and high school in the state, as well as in classrooms at public colleges.

The posters must be no smaller than 11 by 14 inches, and the Commandments must be “the central focus of the poster,” listed “in a large, easily readable font.” The posters must include a three-paragraph statement asserting that the Ten Commandments were a “prominent part of American public education for almost three centuries.”

Louisiana was the first state to enact such a requirement since 1980, when the Supreme Court struck down a similar Kentucky law on First Amendment grounds.

Supporters have argued that the Ten Commandments were not merely a religious text, but also a historical document, laying out the guidelines that have underpinned the modern legal system.

“We believe that there are numerous ways that this law can be applied constitutionally and that create really, really powerful teaching moments for students in our schools,” Ms. Murrill said at a news conference in August, when she and Gov. Jeff Landry, another Republican, laid out the arguments for defending the law.

The legal challenge to the law was brought by nine families with children in Louisiana public schools, including at least two Unitarian Universalist families, a Jewish family, an atheist family, a Presbyterian family and some nonreligious families.

The Rev. Darcy Roake, a Unitarian Universalist minister and one of the parents involved in the suit, called the law “a direct infringement of our religious-freedom rights” and said the judge’s ruling was a source of relief.

“As an interfaith family, we expect our children to receive their secular education in public school and their religious education at home and within our faith communities,” she said in a statement, “not from government officials.”

Source: New York Times