Atlanta family battling state over right to name daughter Allah

ATLANTA — The toddler daughter of Elizabeth Handy and Bilal Walk has everything you would expect: a sweet smile, curious nature and finicky tastes. But, in the eyes of the state of Georgia, the 22-month-old has no name.

According to Handy and Walk, the Georgia Department of Public Health refused to issue the infant a birth certificate with the last name the couple chose for their daughter: Allah.

The ACLU of Georgia has filed suit on behalf of the couple, who say they can’t get a Social Security number for their daughter because they don’t have a birth certificate. They also anticipate problems with access to health care, schools and travel.

“We have to make sure that the state isn’t overstepping their boundaries,” Walk said. “It is just plainly unfair and a violation of our rights.”

State officials, however, said the child’s name — ZalyKha Graceful Lorraina Allah — does not fit the naming conventions set up by state law. They say that ZalyKha’s last name should either be Handy, Walk or a combination of the two.

General counsel Sidney Barrett wrote that, once the birth record is created, ZalyKha’s surname can be changed through a petition to superior court.

But ACLU of Georgia Executive Director Andrea Young said the state’s decision is an example of government overreach and a violation of the First and 14th amendments. In addition, Handy and Walk have a three-year-old son who was given a birth certificate for his name, Masterful Allah, with no problem.

“Naming your child is an expressive action,” said University of California law professor Carlton F.W. Larson, who has written extensively on parental rights to name their children. “And the idea that you get to name your child, and not the state, is a fundamental right. The state would need to have a compelling reason for rejecting a name, and I don’t see it.”

Handy said the couple sought out the ACLU after growing frustrated with the state. But there is another urgency. She is six months pregnant.

“We don’t want to go through that process again,” Handy said.