Michael Newdow
Michael Newdow
Michael Arthur Newdowis an American attorney and emergency medicine physician. He is best known for his efforts to have recitations of the current version of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools in the United States declared unconstitutional because of its inclusion of the phrase "under God". He also filed and lost a lawsuit to stop the invocation prayer at President Bush's second inauguration and in 2009 he filed a lawsuit to prevent references to God and religion from being...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionLawyer
Date of Birth24 June 1953
CountryUnited States of America
I believe I am strengthening the Constitution with my case.
The Constitution says that government isn't supposed to be infusing religion into our society, and so I asked to have that upheld.
And as soon as I did the research, I realized the law seemed to be on my side and I filed the suit.
It was never concluded and violated the Constitution, ... I think that is wrong - I'm happy that the idea is getting recognized and that a judge recognized that.
All it has to do is put the pledge as it was before and say that we are one nation, indivisible, instead of dividing us on religious basis.
My daughter is in the lawsuit because you need that for standing.
People don't simply wake up one day and commit genocide. They start by setting themselves apart from others, diminishing the stature of those adhering to dissenting beliefs in small, insidious steps. They begin by saying, 'We're the righteous, and we'll tolerate those others.' And as the toleration diminishes over time, the inevitable harms are overlooked. It is for that reason that James Madison wisely wrote that 'it is proper to take alarm at the first experiment on our liberties'.
I brought this case because I am an atheist and this offends me, and I have the right to bring up my daughter without God being imposed into her life by her schoolteachers.
I was considering running for political office.
I choose to worship not believing in God and government should not thrust a religious idea down my throat.
Government needs to stay out of the religion business altogether.
But in America, if you're an atheist, you lose.
A federal judge did as he was supposed to do and upheld the Constitution. We should be thankful that we have judiciary that will do that.
Those who deny the existence of a supreme being have been turned into second-class citizens by a government that continuously sends messages that 'real Americans' believe in God.