A federal appeals court has ruled that Louisiana’s law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in all public-school classrooms and state-funded universities is unconstitutional. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana affirmed a lower court’s finding that the law is ‘facially unconstitutional,’ citing violations of the First Amendment. The law, which mandates displays of the Ten Commandments in public schools and state-funded universities, was passed by the state’s Republican-controlled legislature and faced legal challenges from parents and religious groups. Last June, a group of parents sued the state over concerns the law violates the separation of church and state. The district court issued a preliminary injunction on the law last November in the five school districts involving the plaintiffs. The appeals court stated that the law’s minimum requirements provide sufficient details about how the Ten Commandments must be displayed, and that the displays will cause an ‘irreparable’ deprivation of the First Amendment rights. The law was passed by Louisiana’s Republican-controlled legislature and requires the text to be written in ‘large, easily readable font’ with a ‘context statement’ about the ‘History of the Ten Commandments in American Public Education’ and may include other historical documents. Attorneys representing the plaintiffs, including the Americans United for Separation of Church and State, welcomed the ruling, calling it a victory for religious freedom and the rights of families to decide their children’s religious education. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill has stated that her office ‘strongly disagrees’ with the ruling and will seek relief from the full Fifth Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court.