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92_SB1634gms
State of Illinois
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Springfield, Illinois 62706
George H. Ryan
GOVERNOR
July 3, 2002
To the Honorable Members of
The Illinois Senate
92nd General Assembly
I am proud to sign Senate Bill 1634, which amends the
School Code to require that our nation's Pledge of Allegiance
be offered daily in secondary schools that are supported in
some part by public funds.
On the eve of our nation's 226th birthday, it is
important to remember that our children and grandchildren
live at a time when our liberty and way of life are under the
constant threat of attack from elements that do not cherish
freedom or the God-given inalienable rights of all people.
It is therefore proper that the Pledge of Allegiance - a
voluntary act of American patriotism - be offered daily in
our high schools as a reminder of the ideals and values our
country stands for.
This law merely expands that State's current statutes
regarding the Pledge of Allegiance to include pupils in
secondary educational institutions. Current law already
covers pupils in elementary schools.
It is inevitable, and regrettable, that my enactment of
this bill will become involved in the current national debate
over the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance that
has arisen out of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in
California. In my opinion, the ruling of the 9th Circuit is
a tempest in a teapot. The Pledge of Allegiance has survived
previous court challenges and will survive this court
challenge. The Pledge of Allegiance will continue to stand
as a strong individual affirmation of personal belief.
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the Illinois
Statue (105 ILCS 5/27-3) and the expansion of the Illinois
law required in Senate Bill 1634 does not contravene the
ruling of the 7th Circuit Court.
In Illinois, our statute does not - and should not -
require students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance against
their will. The current law simply calls upon pupils in
certain elementary educational institutions to recite the
Pledge of Allegiance on school days. This provision does not
mandate that "all" pupils comply and does not prescribe a
penalty for noncompliance.
As background, please note that in 1943, the U.S. Supreme
Court in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
et al., 319 U.S. 624, held unconstitutional a resolution in
that state concerning the Pledge of Allegiance. In that
case, the Supreme Court invalidated the board-of-education's
mandate that "all" pupils shall recite the pledge or else be
subject to expulsion for an act of insubordination.
Similarly, a bill vetoed in May of this year by the Governor
of Minnesota specifically required that "all" students recite
the Pledge of Allegiance.
In Sherman v. Community Consolidated School District 21
of Wheeling Township, 980 F.2d 437 (Illinois 1992), the 7th
Circuit Court of Appeals held the Illinois law to be
constitutional and distinguished the statute from the U.S.
Supreme Court's 1943 holding. The Court held that Illinois'
pledge statute only applied to "willing" students and further
held that the words "under God" were constitutional. The
U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal from the 7th
Circuit's holding, 508 U.S. 950 (1993), so this decision is
still valid for the Illinois law.
In conclusion, I believe that is is important for those
pupils willing to participate to say the Pledge of Allegiance
everyday in order to instill a sense of patriotism in our
young people, who are the future of our State and our
country. For these reasons, I have signed Senate Bill 1634.
Sincerely,
George H. Ryan
GOVERNOR