Headline

Controversy As US State, Louisiana Asks Schools To Display Ten Commandments

Published

1 year ago

June 20, 2024

Editor

Louisiana has become the first U.S. state to mandate that every public school classroom, from elementary to university level, must display a poster of the Ten Commandments.

The measure, backed by Republicans and signed into law by Governor Jeff Landry on Wednesday, described the commandments as “the foundational documents of our state and national government.”

The law is expected to face challenges from civil rights groups, The American Civil Liberties Union, who argue that it contravenes the separation between church and state enshrined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, specifically the Establishment Clause.

It reads, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”

Ten Commandments new law

The state law requires that a poster include the sacred text in “large, easily readable font” on a poster that is 11 inches by 14 inches (28cm by 35.5cm) and that the commandments are “the central focus” of the display.

It will also be shown alongside a four-paragraph “context statement” which will describe how the commandments “were a prominent part of American public education for almost three centuries”.

The posters must be on display in all classrooms receiving state funding by 2025 – but no state funding is being offered to pay for the posters themselves.

Similar laws have recently been proposed by other Republican-led states, including Texas, Oklahoma and Utah.

Landry says

On his X account late Wednesday, the governor, #LAGovJeffLandry posted on X, “Today, we fulfilled our promise to bring drastic reform to our education system and bring common sense back to our classrooms.

“A strong education system leads to a strong economy and a strong state.

“Our historic Dream Big Package puts the focus back on our kids, and allows Louisiana to follow in the footsteps of our neighbors in the South.

“I am thankful to the legislature for their commitment to making the education system in Louisiana one that students, parents, and teachers can all be proud of.”

There have been numerous legal battles over the display of the Ten Commandments in public buildings, including schools, courthouses and police stations.

An X user, MicheleMaybe, #michele4_t, posted, “What about a Muslim child in that classroom? Or a Buddhist? Or Atheist?

“This is completely illegal and an affront to our US Constitution. Thankfully you’re getting the snot sued out of you, as you should. We are NOT a Theocracy.”

Another X user, Marjorie, #MTGsbigtoe, wrote, “You should keep your lifestyle choice of being a Christian to yourself. The Bible has no place in the classroom.”

Also, carte blanche kitty with account #mrswhiskeykitty, said, “Vouchers will demolish our public schools. This is just a taxpayer bailout for failing religious schools with minimal oversight.”

In 1980, the US Supreme Court struck down a similar Kentucky law requiring that the document be displayed in elementary and high schools.

In a 5-4 vote, the high court ruled that the requirement that the Ten Commandments be posted “had no secular legislative purpose” and was “plainly religious in nature”.

The court noted that in addition to criminal matters like killing and stealing, the Ten Commandments also made references to worshipping God including observing the Sabbath day.

The PUNCH reports that the Ten Commandments are a set of ethical guidelines and principles foundational to the Jewish, Christian, and maybe even Islamic traditions.

Headline

Welcome Home, Israel Confirms Return Of 20 Hostages From Gaza

Published

3 hours ago

October 13, 2025

Editor

Israel said that the last 20 living hostages released by Hamas on Monday had arrived in the country.

“Welcome home,” the foreign ministry wrote in a series of posts on X, hailing the return of Matan Angrest, Gali Berman, Ziv Berman, Elkana Bohbot, Rom Braslavski, Nimrod Cohen, David Cunio, Ariel Cunio, Evyatar David, Guy Gilboa Dalal, Maxim Herkin, Eitan Horn, Segev Kalfon, Bar Kuperstein, Omri Miran, Eitan Mor, Yosef Haim Ohana, Alon Ohel, Avinatan Or and Matan Zangauker.

AFP

Headline

20 Members Of Gang Blacklisted By US Escape Guatemala Prison

Published

5 hours ago

October 13, 2025

Editor

Twenty members of a gang designated a “foreign terrorist organisation” by the United States have escaped from detention in Guatemala, a prison chief said Sunday.

The members of the Barrio 18 gang “evaded security controls” at the Fraijanes II facility, prison director Ludin Godinez said at a news conference.

He received “an intelligence report” on Friday warning about the “possible escape” from the prison, which is southeast of the capital, Guatemala City.

Godinez said they were investigating possible acts of corruption.

Washington last month blacklisted Barrio 18, an El Salvador-based gang which has a reputation for violence and extortion, as part of its crackdown on drug trafficking.

The US embassy in Guatemala condemned the prison escape as “utterly unacceptable.”

“The United States designated members of this heinous group as the terrorists they are and will hold accountable anyone who has provided, provides, or decides to provide material support to these fugitives or other gang members,” the embassy said on X.

It called on the Guatemalan government to “act immediately and vigorously to recapture these terrorists.”

According to Interior Minister Francisco Jimenez, there are about 12,000 gang members and collaborators in Guatemala, while another 3,000 are in prison.

The country’s homicide rate has increased from 16.1 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2024 to 17.65 this year, more than double the world average, according to the Centre for National Economic Research.

According to the Salvadoran government, the gangs Barrio 18 and Mara Salvatrucha, better known as MS-13, are responsible for the deaths of about 200,000 people over three decades.

The two gangs once controlled an estimated 80 percent of El Salvador, which had one of the highest homicide rates in the world.

Headline

South Africa Bus Crash Kills 40 Including Malawi, Zimbabwe Nationals

Published

6 hours ago

October 13, 2025

Editor

At least 40 people, including nationals of Malawi and Zimbabwe, were killed when a passenger bus rolled down an embankment in South Africa, a provincial transport minister said Monday.

The bus travelling to Zimbabwe crashed around 90 kilometres (55 miles) from the border on Sunday after the driver apparently lost control, Limpopo province transport minister Violet Mathye said.

“They are still working on the scene, but 40 bodies have already been confirmed to date,” Mathye told the Newzroom Afrika channel. The dead included a 10-month-old girl, she said.

Thirty-eight people were in hospital and rescuers were searching for other victims, she told eNCA media.

The bus was travelling from the southern city of Gqeberha, around 1,500 kilometres away, and its passengers included Malawians and Zimbabweans who were working in South Africa. The crash may have been caused by driver fatigue or a mechanical fault, the minister said.

South Africa has a sophisticated and busy road network with a high rate of road deaths, blamed mostly on speeding, reckless driving and unroadworthy vehicles.

AFP