(RNS) — The National Council of Jewish Women and 19 other organizations, representing Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs, filed an amicus brief Monday (Jan. 6) opposing a Louisiana law that would require the display of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom in the state.
The Ten Commandments legislation, which passed last year, was temporarily blocked by a federal judge in November. But Louisiana is appealing the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit.
The organizations’ amicus brief argues that the legislation privileges the Protestant Christian interpretation of the Ten Commandments at the expense of other faiths and pressures schoolchildren to venerate a text that may be distinctly different from that of their own religious communities.
“We’re fighting back against the Christian nationalist notion that the Bible is universal,” said Darcy Hirsh, director of government relations and advocacy for the National Council of Jewish Women. “The arguments that we make in this brief demonstrate that different faith groups view the Ten Commandments differently, and by posting them in state classrooms you’re infringing on the religious freedom rights of the students and families in those classrooms.”
Signing onto the amicus brief were the Interfaith Alliance, Hindus for Human Rights, Muslims for Progressive Values and the Sikh Coalition, as well as numerous Jewish groups.
The Loui …