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The Taft Court (1921–30)

First Amendment

CourtSpeak: Plerce v. Society of the Sisters of the
Holy Names of Jesus and Mary
School Choice Case (1925)

Justice James McReynolds (unanimous): “The fundamental theory of liberty upon which all governments in this Union repose excludes any general power of the state to standardize its children by forcing them to accept instruction from public teachers only. The child is not the mere creature of the state; those who nurture him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the high duty, to recognize and prepare him for additional obligations.”