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06/26/2002 Archived Entry: "Pledge"

9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Wednesday declared the Pledge of Allegiance
unconstitutional because of the words "under God" added by Congress in 1954.

In a 2-1 decision, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the phrase amounts
to a government endorsement of religion in violation of the Constitution's
Establishment Clause, which requires a separation of church and state.

The 9th Circuit covers Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada,
Oregon and Washington state. Those are the only states directly affected by the ruling.
The ruling does not take effect for several months, to allow further appeals.
The government can ask the court to reconsider, or take its case to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Pledge Ruled Unconstitutional

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

The Pledge of Allegiance to the United States Flag
The Pledge of Allegiance - A Short History

October 11, 1892
I pledge allegiance to my Flag, and to the Republic for which it stands:
one Nation indivisible, With Liberty and Justice for all.

June 14, 1924
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.

June 14, 1954
I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America,
and to the Republic for which it stands:
one Nation under God, indivisible, With Liberty and Justice for all.

1999-09-30 One Nation, Divisible Under God
Mr. Newdow has degrees from Brown University, UCLA medical school,
and University of Michigan's law school. He's a minister of atheism,
ordained by the Universal Life Church.

This is all anti-communist McCarthy type stuff enacted in the 50s to
fight those godless communists.

I am really surprised this actually got this far, usually these things
get thrown out. I reall wanna see it taken off the money.
That one really bugs me.
I am just glad someone has the time and money to do something like this.
Just like white people don't understand what its like to be black, Men
don't understand what it's liek to be a woman, christians have no clue
what it's like to be anything but christian.

www.ustreas.gov
1955 - President signed Public law 84-140, which mandated that the motto
In God We Trust must appear on all United States currency and coinage.
U.S. Treasury - Fact Sheet on the History of "In God We Trust"