LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Lawyers for Louisiana and Texas were back in court on Tuesday defending laws that require public schools to display the Ten Commandments. Aubri Juhasz of member station WWNO reports.
AUBRI JUHASZ, BYLINE: New Orleans parent Joshua Herlands says when he was explaining to his two kids why their family and several others were suing Louisiana, it was easy.
JOSHUA HERLANDS: The beauty, I think, of the Bill of Rights and of the First Amendment is it's pretty self-explanatory, you know. Do not mix church and state.
JUHASZ: His family believes in the Ten Commandments - they're Jewish - though not with the specific wording of the version the law requires public schools to hang up in every classroom. For now, the courts have effectively blocked the law. A lower court sided with Herlands and other plaintiffs, including the American Civil Liberties Union in 2024. A three-judge panel on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision last year.
So Louisiana appealed to the full court, and Texas, which has its own law, joined. Outside the court after the hearing, Louisiana's Republican attorney general, Liz Murrill, summarized the state's argument.
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LIZ MURRILL: The point that we are trying to make is that this is a foundational document for our legal and our historical traditions in creating our government structures, creating our country.
JUHASZ: Supporters of the law see an opportunity now, after a 2022 case where the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of a high school football coach who prayed on the field with students. And Louisiana's case is being watched closely in other states. In the courtroom, Judge Edith Jones questioned plaintiffs' attorney Jonathan Youngwood about what makes something too religious to be displayed in a public school.
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EDITH JONES: And, Mr. Youngwood, how about Martin Luther King's letter from the Birmingham jail?
JONATHAN YOUNGWOOD: I don't think it would prevent a posting and a sharing, although...
JONES: He refers to Saint Paul. He refers to Thomas Aquinas. He refers to the Old Testament, the New Testament.
YOUNGWOOD: He does, Your Honor...
JONES: It's about as religious as you can get.
JUHASZ: Louisiana's Republican governor, Jeff Landry, told reporters he thinks the court will uphold the state's law.
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JEFF LANDRY: I just think it is high time that we say, listen, we embrace what tradition and heritage is in this country. And I agree with the attorney general. I like our chances.
JUHASZ: If they don't win, state officials say they'll appeal to the Supreme Court.
For NPR News, I'm Aubri Juhasz in New Orleans. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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