In West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, the Supreme Court ruled on the case of a family of children who were sent home from school because they refused on religious grounds to salute the flag. In ruling in favor of the family, Justice Robert Jackson wrote:To sustain the compulsory [required] flag salute we are required to say that a Bill of Rights which guards the individual's right to speak his own mind, left it open to public authorities to compel [force] him to utter [say] what is not in his mind.
Answer
A
It means that the flag salute should be expected of all students regardless of their beliefs.
B
It means that making people say something they do not believe goes against their right to free expression.
C
It means that the Bill of Rights is limited because public authorities can still make people act in certain ways.
D
It means that it is acceptable to require the flag salute because it does not actually change a person’s beliefs.
Explanation
Justice Jackson argues that the Bill of Rights protects people’s right to express their own thoughts, so public authorities cannot force them to say something they do not believe. In this case, requiring students to salute the flag would compel them to express a view against their religious beliefs. Therefore, the quote supports the idea that forced speech violates free expression; choice B states this directly.
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