A display of the 10 Commandments alongside such texts as the Magna Carta and Declaration of Independence was hung in Iowa’s Statehouse last week despite concerns about separation of church and state.
The display in a gallery behind the House chambers was approved by Republican House Speaker Chris Rants, who said it showed “the foundation upon which law is based, all of these things combined.”
The display was donated by 22 women coordinated by the Iowa Family Policy Center. They originally offered it to the new Iowa Judicial Branch Building, but court administrators said the 10 Commandments would have to be removed due to fears of a lawsuit.
The Iowa Civil Liberties Union has condemned the Statehouse display, but an Iowa Family Policy Center attorney said a federal court in Lexington, Ky., approved a similar project in 2002.
