Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry has signed a groundbreaking bill requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in all public school classrooms across the state, from kindergartens to universities. The legislation, effective from 2025, marks the first of its kind in the United States and has reignited the long-standing debate over the separation of church and state.
During the signing ceremony, Governor Landry emphasized the importance of the biblical laws, stating, “If you want to respect the rule of law, you gotta start from the original law given — which was Moses.” The bill mandates that the Ten Commandments be displayed as posters or framed documents, with the text to be printed in a large, easily readable font.
This move has already drawn sharp criticism from civil liberties groups. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has announced its intention to challenge the law in court, arguing that it violates the constitutional principle of the separation of church and state. “The law violates the separation of church and state and is blatantly unconstitutional,” the ACLU said in a statement.
The First Amendment of the US Constitution prohibits the establishment of a national religion or the preferential treatment of one religion over another, a principle the ACLU argues this legislation undermines.
HB 71, as the bill is known, sets a precedent, although similar bills have been proposed in other states within the US “Bible Belt.” The move has sparked a renewed debate about religious expression in public spaces and the boundaries of state and church in educational settings.
