GAY AND LESBIAN ATHEISTS AND HUMANISTS
P.O. Box 34635, Washington, DC 20043-4635
www.galah.org

June 27, 2002

Contact person: Tom Klem
tomonroad@yahoo.com
www.galah.org

Court Ruling Shows That "Under God" Never Should Have Been Added to the Pledge of Allegiance

The ruling by a panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that the Pledge of Allegiance cannot be read in public school classrooms demonstrates the divisive and counterproductive results of inserting the phrase "Under God" into the Pledge during the McCarthy era, according to Gay and Lesbian Atheists and Humanists (GALAH), a national organization that supports separation of church and state.

"Children should not be pushed to pledge anything ‘Under God' in public schools, just as adults should be able to expect that a national Pledge of Allegiance is free from the promotion of religion," said Tom Klem, Treasurer of Gay and Lesbian Atheists and Humanists. "A period of hysteria in the 1950s should not result in a serious state/church separation violation today."

GALAH has observed that gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Americans have borne the brunt of the effects of religious extremists interfering with public policy. Keeping religion out of government policy makes the queer community safer just as it makes this country safer for atheists and humanists.

Freethinkers have hoped for some time that the Pledge would be restored to its pre-1954 version which was free of religious proselytizing. "This court ruling only serves to underline the importance of having a Pledge that includes all Americans," Klem said.

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