Dixon School Case
Encyclopedia
The Dixon School Case was a lawsuit started in 1948 in New Mexico
contesting the use of nuns, religious brothers
and priests as teachers in publicly supported schools under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution
. The case involved thirty schools in eleven New Mexico counties, twenty-eight plaintiffs, two hundred defendants, and public expenditures to the schools of over $600,000 annually. Following on the heels of the U.S. Supreme Court's
decision in Everson v. Board of Education
, which applied First Amendment freedoms to state as well as federal law, the Dixon School Case was the first state case to implement separation of church and state in public schools, and was watched with interest nationally.
in 1941, the school board closed the public school and recognized the parochial St. Joseph's Catholic School as the only public school in the jurisdiction. Protestant parents complained to no avail, and then formed the Dixon Free Schools Committee under the leadership of one Lydia Zellers. After getting nowhere with state and local officials, the group filed suit in April 1948. The dispute had become broader than just the Dixon school district and included twenty-nine other schools across the state. The first named defendant was Raymond Huff, the chairman of the New Mexico Board of Education. The defendants included then governor Thomas J. Mabry
, as well as 145 priests, nuns and brothers of Catholic religious orders.
The initial trial was held on September 27 to October 7, 1948, in the district court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, before Judge E. Turner Hensley of Portales. Judge Hensley ruled that the teachers and administrators had failed to uphold the separation of church and state and that the religious teachings and settings had significant indoctrinating influence on the students. After additional hearings in Spring 1949 he granted an injunction against the Roman Catholic Church prohibiting 139 named religious members from teaching in state schools. The church appealed to the New Mexico Supreme Court
which upheld Judge Hensley's rulings in September 1951, but broadened the ruling to include a prohibition against wearing religious garb as a teacher, doctrinaire textbooks in public schools, public transport to parochial schools, and publicly provided textbooks in parochial schools.
Both the Catholic Church and the state of New Mexico declined to take an appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States.
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
contesting the use of nuns, religious brothers
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
and priests as teachers in publicly supported schools under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
. The case involved thirty schools in eleven New Mexico counties, twenty-eight plaintiffs, two hundred defendants, and public expenditures to the schools of over $600,000 annually. Following on the heels of the U.S. Supreme Court's
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
decision in Everson v. Board of Education
Everson v. Board of Education
Everson v. Board of Education, 330 U.S. 1 was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court which applied the religion clauses in the country's Bill of Rights to state as well as federal law...
, which applied First Amendment freedoms to state as well as federal law, the Dixon School Case was the first state case to implement separation of church and state in public schools, and was watched with interest nationally.
History
In Dixon, New MexicoDixon, New Mexico
Dixon is an unincorporated village located in Rio Arriba County in the U.S. state of New Mexico, on NM Highway 75, just east of NM Highway 68 in the north-central part of the state, at Latitude 36.20 & Longitude -105.89. The elevation of Dixon is 6028 feet above sea level...
in 1941, the school board closed the public school and recognized the parochial St. Joseph's Catholic School as the only public school in the jurisdiction. Protestant parents complained to no avail, and then formed the Dixon Free Schools Committee under the leadership of one Lydia Zellers. After getting nowhere with state and local officials, the group filed suit in April 1948. The dispute had become broader than just the Dixon school district and included twenty-nine other schools across the state. The first named defendant was Raymond Huff, the chairman of the New Mexico Board of Education. The defendants included then governor Thomas J. Mabry
Thomas J. Mabry
Thomas Jewett Mabry was a New Mexico politician and judge, who was Chief Justice of the New Mexico Supreme Court and the 14th Governor of New Mexico ....
, as well as 145 priests, nuns and brothers of Catholic religious orders.
The initial trial was held on September 27 to October 7, 1948, in the district court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, before Judge E. Turner Hensley of Portales. Judge Hensley ruled that the teachers and administrators had failed to uphold the separation of church and state and that the religious teachings and settings had significant indoctrinating influence on the students. After additional hearings in Spring 1949 he granted an injunction against the Roman Catholic Church prohibiting 139 named religious members from teaching in state schools. The church appealed to the New Mexico Supreme Court
New Mexico Supreme Court
The New Mexico Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is established and its powers defined by Article VI of the New Mexico Constitution...
which upheld Judge Hensley's rulings in September 1951, but broadened the ruling to include a prohibition against wearing religious garb as a teacher, doctrinaire textbooks in public schools, public transport to parochial schools, and publicly provided textbooks in parochial schools.
Both the Catholic Church and the state of New Mexico declined to take an appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States.
Further reading
- Holscher, Kathleen A. (2008) Habits in the classroom: A court case regarding Catholic sisters in New Mexico Doctoral Dissertation, Department of Religion, Princeton University, Abstract and Introduction from Scribd
- Note (1955) "Religious Garb in the Public Schools: A Study in Conflicting Liberties" The University of Chicago Law Review 22(4): pp. 888-895