What's in a name? Parents fight with Georgia government over naming their kid Allah

The American Civil Liberties Union have now filed a suit against the state saying that the government has no business telling parents what they can and cannot name their children.

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What's in a name? Parents fight with Georgia government over naming their kid Allah

In Short

  • Without birth certificate the kid can't go to school
  • Parents fear her identity will be in question
  • ACLU has filed a lawsuit against Georgia

An American couple is fighting against the US state of Georgia after the authorities barred them from including the word "Allah" in the surname of their daughter.

State officials have refused to issue birth certificate in the name of 'ZalyKha Graceful Lorraina Allah' for the 22-month-old daughter of Elizabeth Handy and Bilal Walk.

The parents say the included Allah in her name because it was "noble" and had nothing to do with religion.

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A report in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper said state officials at the Department of Public Health have said that the name does not fit the naming conventions set up by state law.

They say that the child's last name should either be Handy, Walk or a combination of the two. In a letter to the family, state officials have also suggested that once an official birth record is created, a surname can be changed through a petition to a superior court.

The American Civil Liberties Union have now filed a suit against the state saying that the government has no business telling parents what they can and cannot name their children.

For parents a delay in getting birth certificate means they will have trouble sending her to school or get her admitted to a healthcare centre besides a lack of access to social security system.

They fear that their daughter's identity as a US citizen will be questioned without any valid documents.

ACLU's Executive Director Andrea Young said in a statement that Elizabeth and Bilal jumped through every bureaucratic hoop that's required to obtain a birth certificate for their daughter, but officials at the Department of Public Health refused to record the birth certificate with the name of their choice.

"The department's actions interfere with the couple's right to raise their child and are a clear violation of the right to freedom of speech and the right to equal protection under the law. The department has also caused real harm, preventing this couple and their child from receiving the benefits they need and deserve," he said.

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