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Religion
Engel v. Vitale
Decided: 1962
In brief
Barred state-composed prayer in public schools as a violation of the Establishment Clause.
The Court's ruling in depth
The New York Board of Regents composed a brief, nondenominational prayer for daily voluntary recitation. The Court struck it down: 'It is no part of the business of government to compose official prayers for any group of the American people to recite as a part of a religious program carried on by government.' Engel provoked one of the greatest public backlashes in Supreme Court history and remains a touchstone of school-prayer litigation.