Controversial Ten Commandments bill may soon reach the Governor’s desk

BATON ROUGE, La. (KALB) - A bill requiring that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every classroom in Louisiana passed in the State Senate by a vote of 30 yeas to eight nays on Thursday, May 16.

House Bill 71 by Republican State Representative Dodie Horton, would mandate all state-funded public and non-public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every building and classroom. The proposed legislation establishes guidelines for the display of the Ten Commandments, mandating that the displayed document must be at least 11 by 14 inches, must be the central focus of the display and must be printed in a large, easily readable font.

According to Representative Horton, her bill intends to provide the students of Louisiana with moral guidelines through the Ten Commandments, calling it a “historical document.”

During previous House debates on the bill, the ACLU of Louisiana voiced opposition against the bill, claiming it could be seen as a state-sanctioned religion.

During a debate on the Senate floor, the bill saw strong opposition from State Senator Royce Duplessis, who said that despite being a practicing Catholic, he does not agree with the proposal, saying it could oppress students of religions that don’t recognize the Ten Commandments.

“You want your kids to learn about the Ten Commandments? Take them to church. I don’t think this is appropriate for us to mandate, to post the Ten Commandments in any classroom”

State Senator Adam Bass, who carried the proposed law on behalf of Representative Horton, defended the bill against Duplessis’s arguments, stating that while the Ten Commandments are religious, the law itself is not. Senator Bass defended this claim by citing the document’s prevalence in American history and legal system.

“Although this is a religious document, this document is also posted in over one hundred and eighty places, including the Supreme Court of the United States of America. I would say is based on the laws that this country was founded on.”

An amendment offered by State Senator John Morris III, would permit schools to display other historical documents such as: the Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence and the Northwest Ordinance. The amendment was successfully adopted into the bill.

Due to the integration of Senator Morris’s amendment, the bill must be voted on again by the House of Representatives. If the House passes the amended bill, then it would head to Governor Landry’s desk for a signing into law.

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