By james art BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – A judge heard arguments in Federal Court in Baton Rouge Monday on whether to temporarily block a new Louisiana law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom by Jan. 1.
U.S. District Judge John W. deGravels, who is presiding over the proceedings, did not say when he would rule. However, he must do so by November 15.
Opponents say the law is an unconstitutional violation of the separation of church and state and that the exhibit will isolate students, especially those who are not Christian. Supporters argue that the measure is not only religious, but has historical significance for the foundation of US law. Louisiana, a reliably Republican state located in the Bible Belt, is the only state with such a requirement.
In June, parents of religiously diverse Louisiana public school children filed a lawsuit arguing that the legislation violates First Amendment language prohibiting government establishment of religion and guaranteeing religious freedom.
Gov. Jeff Landry, a conservative Republican who supported the new law, has said for months that he looks forward to defending his mandate in court. Asked at a news conference in August what he would say to parents who are upset about the Ten Commandments displayed in their child’s classroom, he replied: “If these posters are in a school and they (parents) find them so vulgar, just tell a kid not to look at it.”
Louisiana law, which applies to all K-12 public schools and state-funded university classrooms, requires that the Ten Commandments be displayed on a poster or framed document at least 11 inches by 14 inches (28 by 36 centimeters) where the text is the central focus and “printed in large, easy-to-read type”. Each poster should also be accompanied by a four-paragraph background statement.
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