Board of Education of Kiryas Joel Village School District v. Grumet (1993)
- Docket
- 93-517
- Decided
- 1993-01-01
Summary
Question: Did the 1989 statute violate the First Amendment's Establishment? Conclusion: Yes. In a 6-to-3 decision, the Court held that the statute's purpose was to exclude all but those who lived in and practiced the village enclave's extreme form of Judaism. This exclusionary intent failed to respect the Establishment Clause's requirement that states maintain a neutral position with respect to religion, because it clearly created a school zone which excluded those who were non-religious and/or did not practice Samtar Hasidism. Indeed, the very essence of the Establishment Clause is that government should not demonstrate a preference for one religion over another, or religion over non-religion in general.