West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette

E81012

West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette is a landmark 1943 U.S. Supreme Court decision, authored by Justice Robert H. Jackson, that held the government cannot compel public school students to salute the flag or recite the Pledge of Allegiance, firmly protecting freedom of speech and religious liberty.

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Statements (50)

Predicate Object
instanceOf U.S. Supreme Court case
civil liberties case
constitutional law case
landmark First Amendment case
arguedDate 1943-03-11
citation 319 U.S. 624
constitutionalProvisionAppliedToStatesBy Fourteenth Amendment
constitutionalProvisionInterpreted First Amendment to the United States Constitution
surface form: First Amendment Free Speech Clause
country United States of America
surface form: United States
decidedOn Flag Day
decisionDate 1943-06-14
defendant Walter Barnette
defendantClass Jehovah's Witness schoolchildren
dissentingJustice Felix Frankfurter
Justice Owen J. Roberts
surface form: Owen J. Roberts

Stanley Reed
docketNumber 591
hasJurisdiction Supreme Court of the United States
surface form: United States Supreme Court
holding Compulsory flag salutes and pledge recitations violate the First Amendment.
Officials may not prescribe what shall be orthodox in matters of opinion.
The Right of Free Speech
surface form: The Free Speech Clause protects the right not to speak.

The government may not compel public school students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
The government may not compel public school students to salute the flag.
impact Established a foundational precedent for the compelled speech doctrine.
Limited government power to enforce ideological conformity.
Strengthened protection for students' First Amendment rights in public schools.
issue Whether a state may compel public school students to salute the flag and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
justiceOnMajority Justice Frank Murphy
surface form: Frank Murphy

Justice Harlan F. Stone
surface form: Harlan F. Stone

Hugo L. Black
Robert H. Jackson
Justice Wiley B. Rutledge
surface form: Wiley B. Rutledge

William O. Douglas
keyQuote If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion.
No official, high or petty, can force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein.
legalSubject First Amendment to the United States Constitution
compelled speech doctrine
free exercise of religion
freedom of speech
lowerCourtDisposition Three-judge district court enjoined enforcement of the flag-salute requirement.
majorityOpinionBy Robert H. Jackson
originatingCourt United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia
overruledCase Minersville School District v. Gobitis
overruledCaseCitation 310 U.S. 586
plaintiff West Virginia State Board of Education
rearguedDate 1943-03-12
supremeCourtDisposition Affirmed the district court judgment.
term 1942 term of the U.S. Supreme Court
topic compelled patriotic expression
rights of religious minorities

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Referenced by (8)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Robert H. Jackson notableWork West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
Felix Frankfurter notableCase West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
United States Supreme Court cases of the Stone Court includesCase West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
Minersville School District v. Gobitis overruledBy West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
Minersville School District v. Gobitis isRelatedCase West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
Walter Barnette inspired West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
Walter Barnette legalCase West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
Justice Robert H. Jackson (did not participate in majority) notableWork West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
subject surface form: Robert H. Jackson
this entity surface form: opinion in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette