PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE DEBATE

Overview

On June 22, 1942, Congress first codified the Pledge of Allegiance as, "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." On June14, 1954, Congress amended title 36, section 1972 of the United States Code to add the words "under God" after the word "Nation."

In 2000, the father of a California elementary school student brought action challenging the constitutionality of the school district's policy requiring teacher-led recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance and statute inserting words "under God" into the Pledge. The United States District Court for the Eastern District of California dismissed the action, and the father appealed. The Court of Appeals held that: (1) father had standing to challenge constitutionality of both statute and district's policy; (2) statute violated Establishment Clause of First Amendment; and (3) policy violated Establishment Clause.

On February 28, 2003, a federal appeals court rejected the Bush administration's request to reconsider its decision. Legal experts predict that this issue will eventually be reviewed by the Supreme Court.

On October 14, 2003, The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to give full review of Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow. In addition to the First Amendment issue, the Court also wants to hear arguments on whether Newdow had standing to bring the suit on behalf of his 9-year-old daughter. (View Supreme Court Docket)

Cases

Newdow v. U.S. Congress (February 28, 2003)

Newdow v. U.S. Congress, 292 F.3d 597 (9th Cir.2002)
[Westlaw] [Lexis]

Newdow v. U.S. Congress, 313 F.3d 495 (C.A.9 2002)
[Westlaw] [Lexis]

Newdow v. U.S. Congress 313 F.3d 500 (C.A.9 2002)
[Westlaw] [Lexis]

News Articles

High Court To Consider Pledge in Schools, Scalia Recuses Himself From California Case (Washingtonpost.com, October 15, 2003)
U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Pledge of Allegiance Case (Legal Times, October 15, 2003)
Pledge of Allegiance Ruling Is Upheld 'Under God' Phrase Splits Appeals Court (Washingtonpost, March 3, 2003)
Pledge Battle Could Head To High Court (CBSNews.com, February 28, 2003)
Appeals Court Won't Reconsider Its Pledge Ruling (Washingtonpostpost, February 28, 2003) Lawmakers blast Pledge ruling (CNN.com, June 27, 2002)
Gov't to ask rehearing of Pledge ruling (CNN.com, June 27, 2002)
Critics say court was 'California dreaming' (USA Today, June 27, 2002)
Lawsuit inspired by plaintiff's daughter (United Press International, June 26, 2002)

Law Reviews

Gedicks, Frederick Mark, "A Two-Track Theory of the Establishment Clause,"
43 B.C. L. Rev 1071 (September 2002) [Westlaw] [Lexis]

Marshall, William P., "The Limits of Secularism: Public Religious Expression in Moments of National Crisis and Tragedy," 78 Notre Dame L. Rev. 11 (December 2002) [Westlaw] [Lexis]

Sanford, Bill W. Jr., Student article. "Separation v. Patriotism: Expelling the Pledge From School," 34 St. Mary's L.J. 461-502 (2003). [Westlaw] [Lexis]

Schippers, Eric, "Much Ado About the Ninth Circuit," 50 Federal Lawyer 20 (January 2003) [Westlaw] [Lexis]

Steenson, Michael K., "Justice in a Changed World: Pledging Allegiance," 29 Wm. Mitchell L. Rev. 747 (2003) [Westlaw] [Lexis]

Young, Ernest A., "Judicial Activism and Conservative Politics," 73 U. Colo. L. Rev. 1139 (Fall 2002) [Westlaw] [Lexis]

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, e-mail:
Diane D'Angelo, Reference Librarian. Last modified:June 5, 2006.