Jehovah's Witnesses and not saluting the U.S. flag...
Item # 726605
January 18, 1939
THE NEW YORK TIMES, Jan. 18, 1939
* 13 year old school student Grace Sandstrom case
* Refusing to salute the American flag in classroom
* Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society member
* Charles Taze Russell followers - Bible Students
The top of page 21 has a one column heading: "RULES FLAG SALUTE LEGAL IN SCHOOLS" with subheads. (see images)
I suspect this to be an extremely rare item because there was really no reason to save it at the time.
Complete with 42 pages, rag edition in great condition.
Background: The case of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Sandstrom (often identified in legal records as Oscar and Jessie Sandstrom) serves as a poignant human focal point for the legal struggle that redefined American civil liberties. Residents of Brookhaven, New York, the Sandstroms were dedicated Jehovah’s Witnesses who, in 1938, instructed their daughter, Grace, to refuse the mandatory flag salute at her school based on their interpretation of the Second Commandment. Their subsequent prosecution for "educational neglect"—under the Kafkaesque logic that they were responsible for Grace’s absence despite the school being the party that expelled and barred her—resulted in a conviction and a $10 fine, which they appealed all the way to the New York Court of Appeals. Though Judge Frederick E. Crane and the majority upheld the state’s right to compel the salute as a secular act of "national unity," the Sandstroms' refusal to yield to state-mandated orthodoxy highlighted a glaring contradiction: the government was essentially punishing parents for their children’s adherence to religious conscience. Their steadfastness during a period of intense pre-war xenophobia and "subversive" labeling provided the essential legal friction necessary to move the issue into the federal spotlight, ultimately forcing the judiciary to recognize that true liberty includes the right to remain silent when the state demands a profession of faith or patriotism.
* 13 year old school student Grace Sandstrom case
* Refusing to salute the American flag in classroom
* Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society member
* Charles Taze Russell followers - Bible Students
The top of page 21 has a one column heading: "RULES FLAG SALUTE LEGAL IN SCHOOLS" with subheads. (see images)
I suspect this to be an extremely rare item because there was really no reason to save it at the time.
Complete with 42 pages, rag edition in great condition.
Background: The case of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Sandstrom (often identified in legal records as Oscar and Jessie Sandstrom) serves as a poignant human focal point for the legal struggle that redefined American civil liberties. Residents of Brookhaven, New York, the Sandstroms were dedicated Jehovah’s Witnesses who, in 1938, instructed their daughter, Grace, to refuse the mandatory flag salute at her school based on their interpretation of the Second Commandment. Their subsequent prosecution for "educational neglect"—under the Kafkaesque logic that they were responsible for Grace’s absence despite the school being the party that expelled and barred her—resulted in a conviction and a $10 fine, which they appealed all the way to the New York Court of Appeals. Though Judge Frederick E. Crane and the majority upheld the state’s right to compel the salute as a secular act of "national unity," the Sandstroms' refusal to yield to state-mandated orthodoxy highlighted a glaring contradiction: the government was essentially punishing parents for their children’s adherence to religious conscience. Their steadfastness during a period of intense pre-war xenophobia and "subversive" labeling provided the essential legal friction necessary to move the issue into the federal spotlight, ultimately forcing the judiciary to recognize that true liberty includes the right to remain silent when the state demands a profession of faith or patriotism.
Category: The 20th Century
