Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Sept. 15, 2005, edition 1 / Page 6
Part of Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
6 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2005 California court says pledge not mandatory Supreme Court likely to see case BY KAVITA PILLAI STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR Controversy has been reignit ed about the constitutionality of reciting the pledge of allegiance in public schools, and the case could once again be headed for the U.S. Supreme Court. U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence Karlton ruled Wednesday in favor of Michael Newdow, of Sacramento, an atheist who claimed that the pledge is uncon stitutional. Newdow, who filed on behalf of three parents and their chil dren, lost a similar case before the Supreme Court last year. The Court dismissed the case because Newdow did not have legal cus tody of his elementary school daughter. But Karlton simply was follow ing the 2002 precedent set by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled in favor of Newdow, said William Marshall, a profes sor at UNC’s School of Law. “The judge was just doing what he’s supposed to do given that his court is within the jurisdiction of the ninth circuit,” he said. “I suppose the judge could have tried to be more creative and find —The Embers!! Live at the Great Hall! Swing & Shag Dance Party H Sunday, September 18th 7:oopm-11:00pmpm Shag lesson at 6:30 $5 in advance (sold at Union Box Office) $8 at the door Co-Sponsord by UNC & Duke Ballroom Dance Clubs Funded for by Robertson Scholars Program Questions? - lpope@email.unc.edu • www.unc.edu/student/orgs/hallroom l | NEW BAR at COSMIC CANTINA j SEPTEMBER 16"' j I Guaranteed Open Until 4AM a way to disregard the ninth cir cuit precedent.” Ignoring precedent would have been preferable to the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a party in the case. “(The judge) wanted to use the ninth circuit prior opinion to do the dirty work for him,” said Derek Gaubatz, director of litiga tion for the Becket Fund. He said the organization planned to appeal the decision immediately. “It’s outside of mainstream America, and it’s outside of main stream legal jurisprudence,” he said. “If you can’t voluntarily recite the pledge then you can’t volun tarily recite the Declaration of Independence. “The pledge reflects politi cal philosophy that has driven our country from the beginning that our rights come not just from the government but from a higher source.” Gaubatz said that the Becket Fund hopes the circuit court reverses its precedent and that the organization will pursue the case to the Supreme Court if necessary. But Arnold Loewy, a professor at UNC’s School of Law, said the result of the case was the right one, though he hadn’t yet read the opinion. “What’s important is not the fact of the pledge, or even that the News “(The judge) wanted to use the ninth circuit prior opinion to do the dirty workfor him” DEREK GAUBATZ, THE BECKET FUND government has the pledge, but that the individual must recite the pledge or, alternatively, single himself out as someone who does not want to recite the pledge,” he said. Loewy said reciting the pledge of allegiance poses more than just the problem of endorsing religion. “It has the problem of the patri otic atheists appearing nonpatri otic by refusing to participate,” he said. “It has all of the problems of school prayer plus.” But Gaubatz, who called the decision “extreme,” said the right to recite the pledge has been denied by the ruling. “The Becket Fund is repre senting 10 California school children, who have been able to recite the pledge,” he said. “And we want their ability to do that preserved.” Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu. WOMEN IN ACTION INFO SESSIONS THURSDAY SEP, 15 | S:OOPM CVYC & 6:OOPM 142 CRAIGE NORTH If you are looking for a nay to volunteer on / campus, checkout Hpp W JB Women In Action, a B, v , student organization Bp' dedicated to assisting ■jk fAN campus women. For %Nk more information, at aralker(ar email.unc.edu. carolina'uiomen icenter fl Leaders stress housing needs BY TED STRONG CITY EDITOR Speakers at an area roundtable discussion Wednesday said the key to addressing homelessness in Orange County could be disarm ingly simple give them homes. Several speakers at the event enthused about anew theory called Housing First, which claims many homeless individuals live on the street because conditions in shel ters are often less desirable. Stan Holt, Triangle United Way’s community impact specialist on homelessness, characterized the choice facing homeless under the current system: “Do I choose to be in a shelter with a hundred other people, or do I just choose to be in my tent?” The most recent data available gathered on Jan. 26 found 230 homeless people in Orange County, 197 of whom were in shelters. James Newkirk, a local home less man, also linked some street people’s prolonged homelessness to societal indifference. “(A homeless man) could lay out there and die, and no one would really care,” he said. “That’s the rea son why so many people are home less, is because no one cares.” Regardless of why people are on the street, Housing First proposes to offer them a space of their own first and then offer them services they may need. This differs from current proce dure, which calls for the homeless to go through a series of programs gradually ramping up to indepen dent living. “It’s very based on medication The man who took you to BABYLON with WHITE LADDER is back! DiUlflD GRAY LIFE IN SLOW MOTION Featuring the hit THE ONE I LOVE r ' m k JBk IN STORES NOW Also available: LIFE IN SLOW MOTION Dual Disc. j l Disc—-Two Experiences. Featuring entire * •' album in Enhanced Stereo. "Life In Slow Motion" Documentary. Photo Gallery & complete song lyrics. DAVIDGIUY j|y @ ..*. BORDERS Produced by Marius de Vues with Gray McClune-Polson, \ UAVIDGRAYCOM | ATORECORDS COM | RGARLCORDS COM i | and sobriety compliance,” said Mary Jean Seyda, assistant direc tor of Community Alternatives for Supportive Abodes, a Wake County group. Philip Mangano, executive director for the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, said that the problem with traditional solu tions to homelessness is that they are not focused on the needs of the homeless, but on what providers want to provide. “The fresh idea is to be ‘con sumer-centric,’” he said. Mangano said that the current array of services, while helpful, is consistently missing certain seg ments of the affected population. “We don’t want people coming back to the shelter, we don’t want people coming back to the street,” Seyda said. “Once people are suc cessfully housed, we want to keep them housed.” But Mangano said the 10-year plan the county and towns have adopted requires several factors for success. He said that without support throughout the community, span ning from business owners to police and social services to government officials the initiative will fail. Many in the community, includ ing some government officials, are already on board. But other groups are less secure in their support. “We need all sectors of the com munity involved,” said Billie Guthrie with Orange-Person-Chatam Area Program. “Our government needs to engage them, and they need to be ready to jump in.” But she said that some groups, Take a 30-minute study break. BHBHHBjjBBBBHBBH g Finally, place to work out that fits a student budget and a busy student schedule. Curves is 30- y : - iniimtc litricss. bointnonsensc vsnglit loss, and all tbr you mSBBMBm' Curves curvesinternational com power to amare yourwir (919) 932-3202 (919) 963-3202 1129 Weaver Dairy Rd., Ste. V 104D Hwy. 54 West Chapel Hill. NC 27514 Carrboro, NC 27510 Ooor 9,000 locations worldwide. (The ooilg (Ear Mrri like the University and local busi nesses could be more involved. “I don’t feel the University did anything to make me aware of the problem,” said Emily Rangel, a stu dent intern for the program. “I think that my experience was limited to my experience on Franklin (Street).” Also key is the availability of affordable housing, something that’s somewhat scarce locally. Robert Dowling, director of the Orange Community Housing and Land Trust, said that the need for housing ranges from homeless people looking for basic shelter to teachers trying to live in the com munities in which they work. “Affordable is $400,000 in some of our communities,” Mangano said. But once housing is found for the core of homeless who are continu ally on the street, more funds will be freed up to help those who are not habitual denizens of the street. “When cost savings accumulate, they need to be invested,” Mangano said. To that end, he said he tries to work with municipal executives to point out ways that funding in one area can lead to savings in another. In the end, though, Seyda noted, it is key to keep the issue in people’s minds. “Part of getting people employed is an advocacy piece,” she said. “If we do advocate for system changes ... we’re going to keep spinning our wheels like we have.” Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Sept. 15, 2005, edition 1
6
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75