A federal judge in Louisiana on Tuesday blocked a state law requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom. The legislation, which was passed by state lawmakers this year, has been closely watched since Louisiana is 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 of the measure have braced themselves for backlash 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 who was appointed to the bench by President Barack Obama, found that the law, which was set 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 she strongly disagreed with the decision and vowed an immediate appeal.Supporters of the bill expect a friendlier reception from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which is considered one of the nation’s most conservative courts.
The measure in Louisiana requires that posters of the Commandments be displayed in each classroom of every public elementary, middle and high school, as well as public college classrooms.
The posters must be no smaller than 11 by 14 inches and the Commandments must be “the central focus of the poster” and “in a large, easily readable font.” And they must include a three-paragraph statement asserting that the Ten Commandments were a “prominent part of American public education for almost three centuries.”
Louisiana became the first state to enact this kind of requirement since the Supreme Court struck down a Kentucky law in 1980 on the grounds of violating the First Amendment.
Supporters have argued that the Ten Commandments were not purely a religious text, but a historical document with guidelines that have underpinned the modern legal system.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, during which she and Gov. Jeff Landry, who is also a Republican, laid out the arguments for defending the law.
The legal challenge was brought by nine families with children in Louisiana public schools. The group — which includes at least two Unitarian Universalist families, a Jewish family, an atheist family, a Presbyterian family and nonreligious families — argued that the law “unconstitutionally pressures students into religious observance.”
The post Federal Judge Blocks Louisiana Law Requiring Ten Commandments in Classrooms appeared first on New York Times.
