Indiana License Plates

[Conkle, Daniel O.]

I see Steve's point, but I'm not sure I agree.  Other things equal, I
would think that the existence of choice (even if skewed to a degree)
would make the establishment clause claim weaker, not stronger.
Likewise, the existence of choice suggests that there is an element of
personal speech here, which likewise might tend to counteract an
establishment clause argument.  I wonder if the problem--if there is
one--is the prominence and the novelty of the license plate displays,
which are partly personal but largely governmental speech and which
arguably go beyond the bounds of the tradition that supports the
national motto in other contexts.

Dan Conkle 
******************************************* 
Daniel O. Conkle 
Robert H. McKinney Professor of Law 
Indiana University School of Law 
Bloomington, Indiana  47405 
(812) 855-4331 
fax (812) 855-0555 
e-mail conkle at indiana.edu 
******************************************* 
  

-----Original Message-----
From: religionlaw-bounces at lists.ucla.edu
[mailto:religionlaw-bounces at lists.ucla.edu] On Behalf Of Steve Sanders
Sent: Friday, March 23, 2007 12:48 PM
To: religionlaw at lists.ucla.edu
Subject: RE: Indiana License Plates

Were Indiana to put this same motto on all standard license plates, and 
not offer its citizens any choice in the matter, I think the analogy to 
the currency would be perfectly apt.

But this seems different.  In Indiana, there's a standard plate and 
various optional plates.  If you choose an optional plate to express 
your support for your university, or veterans, or the national guard, 
or DARE, or even "our troops," you pay an extra fee.  But choose the 
optional plate on which you display the government's endorsement of 
God, and the government in effect gives you a subsidy for agreeing to 
propagate that particular religious message.


Quoting "Volokh, Eugene" <VOLOKH at law.ucla.edu>:

> 	Well, to the same extent that the motto on currency is
> establishment, or the phrase "Let this be our motto, In God Is Our
> Trust" in our national anthem is establishment -- which is to say,
given
> the courts' caselaw on this, not establishment.
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: religionlaw-bounces at lists.ucla.edu
>> [mailto:religionlaw-bounces at lists.ucla.edu] On Behalf Of Jean Dudley
>> Sent: Thursday, March 22, 2007 10:10 PM
>> To: Law & Religion issues for Law Academics
>> Subject: Indiana License Plates
>>
>> Specialty plates cost money;  But not if you want to proclaim
>> your religiosity on the rear bumper of your car in Indiana.
>>
>> http://fauxrealtho.com/2007/03/22/in-god-indiana-trusts/
>>
>> The author brings up a very good point:  Indiana has a number
>> of specialty license plates available, but the "In God We
>> Trust" plates don't carry the extra fees that all the others
>> do.  Why should those who identify with religion do so at
>> taxpayer's expense?
>>
>> It smacks of establishment of religion, to me.
>>
>> Jean Dudley
>>
>>
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_________________________________

Steve Sanders
E-mail:  stevesan at umich.edu
_______________________________________________
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