Court ruling looms for Louisiana law mandating Ten Commandments display in public classrooms

The fate of a Louisiana law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public school classrooms is in limbo, as federal judges weigh what has become a heated religious liberty dispute.

The law, signed by Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry in June, requires all public K-12 and university classrooms to display the commandments on at least 11-by-14-inch posters in “large, easily readable font.”

The law requires a “context statement” to be displayed with the commandments that details the historical significance of the text in American public education. It also allows schools the option of displaying other key documents such as the Mayflower Compact and Declaration of Independence along with the Ten Commandments.  

A legal battle has since unfolded over whether the displays are a method to educate students about “state and national history, culture, and tradition,” as the law insists – or whether displaying the religious text in public schools violates the First Amendment’s establishment clause.  

A court decision is looming in the case after a U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals panel heard oral arguments on Jan. 23. The first state law of its kind in recent history, Louisiana’s mandate has received national attention as the court dispute has played out.  

President Trump has even weighed in, backing Louisiana’s law and writing on Truth Social last year it could be the “first major step” in a “desperately needed” religious revival for the country.  

More than a dozen states have also publicly supported Louisiana’s efforts, citing the important role the Ten Commandments have played in the country’s heritage. On Friday, South Dakota’s House Education Committee voted to advance a nearly identical bill.  

Becket, a religious liberty law firm, has argued on behalf of Louisiana that religion should “not be scrubbed from the public square,” pointing to religious symbolism that “has been a part of American life for centuries, appearing in everything from state seals and flags to our national monuments and currency.” 

In court briefs, attorneys for the state pointed to a display of Moses and the Ten Commandments in the Supreme Court, and a portrait of Moses in the Capitol building.  

“No one thinks this is some elaborate effort to coerce every public servant, attorney, and tourist who sees these displays into worshipping and obeying Moses and the Commandments,” the state’s brief argues, noting the displays also do not discriminate against other religions. “Rather, these displays – like countless others across our Nation – simply recognize the “historical significance” that the Ten Commandments have “as one of the foundations of our legal system.” 

The civil liberties groups suing over the law, including the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State, have argued the law unconstitutionally holds students “captive” to the Scripture.  

“The First Amendment does not allow this,” a brief for the groups notes of the displays. “The rights to decide which religion, if any, to follow and which religious beliefs, if any, to adopt and practice are constitutionally reserved to individuals, parents, families, and faith communities – not government officials.”