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IMPORTANT ESTABLISHMENT CLAUSE CASES
In recent years it has become fashionable to attack the Supreme
Court as "going to far" with respect to religion and the public
schools. We believe that much of this criticism is grounded in a
misunderstanding of the law. As we demonstrate elsewhere, for
example, leaders of the religious right are simply incorrect when
they argue that the Supreme Court has made it illegal to pray in school. Similarly, the
right mischaracterizes the law when they claim that the Supreme
Court has made the public schools a "religion-free zone," or
"kicked God out of the public schools."
To help clarify what the law actually says, we present here a
detailed table of cases dealing with the Establishment Clause and
the public schools. The table was prepared by Susan Batte, a
practicing lawyer and President of the Virginia Beach Chapter of
American's United for Separation of Church and State. Read
through this table to get a better understanding of just what the
Supreme Court has ruled about separation and the public schools,
and why.
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