Pledge of Allegiance Rule for Schools OKd
MISSOURI
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The Pledge of Allegiance must be recited every week in Missouri’s public schools under a bill signed into law a week after a panel of federal judges ruled the wording of the pledge is unconstitutional.
State lawmakers had passed the bill before the ruling was issued, and Gov. Bob Holden said it didn’t affect his decision to sign.
In their June 26 decision, three judges from the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said that the pledge phrase “one nation under God” amounted to a government endorsement of religion, which violates the separation of church and state.
That ruling, which applies to nine Western states and not Missouri, has been stayed until other members of the court have a chance to weigh in.
Under the Missouri law, effective Aug. 28, public schools must ensure the pledge is recited weekly in a scheduled class of every student, but students cannot be required to participate.
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