Argument Prompt

Every day, kids at school stand up and say The Pledge of Allegiance to the flag.
Some people view this as a being loyal, patriotic, and respectful to our country.
Others question whether they agree with the words or the action of worshipping a
flag. Read through the pros and cons of the Pledge of Allegiance link and read the
articles below, to form an argument. Should students be required to stand and
Pledge Allegiance to the flag even though it mentions God in it?

http://undergod.procon.org/

Atheists' New Plan of Attack Against Pledge of

Allegiance: State Courts
By Harry Bruinius

An atheist New Jersey family is saying the phrase 'under God' in the Pledge of Allegiance is a violation
of their equal protection under state law. Previously, such lawsuits were filed in federal court.
For the second time in a year, American atheists and humanists are asking a state court to remove the
phrase "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance, saying daily requirements to recite the phrase in public
schools discriminates against atheist children.
Last month, a nonbelieving New Jersey family sued its local school district in state court, claiming the
daily classroom exercise violates the equal protection guarantees of the New Jersey constitution, the
American Humanist Association announced on Monday. The group has joined the family as plaintiffs in
the case.
Last fall, the Massachusetts Supreme Court heard similar arguments from the humanist association,
which represents another nonbelieving family that claims laws requiring their children to recite "under
God" discriminate against their beliefs.
This new focus on state laws and state constitutions represents a change in tactics for American atheists,
who have traditionally sued in federal courts, mostly arguing that the First Amendment of the US
Constitution forbids religious expressions in civic spaces.
In the Massachusetts and New Jersey cases, however, atheists are claiming minority status and basing
their arguments on guarantees of equal protection under the law.
"This approach, thinking of atheists as decent Americans who should not be discriminated against, is
quite frankly long overdue," says David Niose, legal director at the American Humanist Association. "It's
almost as if the Establishment Clause has distracted from the fact that this is a minority group that
deserves to be treated with respect."

Indeed, atheists, who make up about 3 percent of the population, continue to be one of the least
respected groups in the country, according to a number of polls over the years. A 2006 study at the
University of Minnesota found that Americans rank atheists below Muslims and recent immigrants as
"sharing their vision of American society." A 2012 Gallup poll found that only half of Americans would
consider voting for an atheist.
But while federal courts and First Amendment claims have mostly proven fruitless, many atheists and
humanists hope state courts - especially in so-called blue states - will be more open to their claims.
"The states have different standards with regard to equality, as well as a lot of other different constitutional
rights," says Mr. Niose. "So if you're an atheist who happens to feel that you're being discriminated
against, it only makes sense to consider all of the alternatives."
"If it's very clear that some states have developed equal protection law that really sets a high standard,
then that's obviously where we want to go," he continues.
Students have long had the right to opt out of reciting the pledge - an exercise of free speech and religion,
courts have said.
But in seeking minority status, atheists argue the "under God" phrase keeps them from fully participating
in civic life. The New Jersey complaint alleges that, in opting out of the daily reciting of the pledge,
nonbelieving students are stigmatized even more.
The law's requirement "publicly disparages plaintiffs' religious beliefs, calls plaintiffs' patriotism into
question, portrays plaintiffs as outsiders and second-class citizens, and forces (the child) to choose
between nonparticipation in a patriotic exercise or participation in a patriotic exercise that is invidious to
him and his religious class."
The New Jersey school district sued by the American Humanist Association says this new legal strategy is
still the wrong forum to address their claims of discrimination.
"All we are doing is abiding by requirements of state law, we and approximately 590 other school districts
in the state," said David Rubin, attorney for the school district, to the Asbury Park Press. "If the group
who's brought this lawsuit questions the wisdom of that policy or the legality of it, we believe their
arguments are much better directed to the state Legislature, who's imposed this requirement on us, rather
than suing an individual school district on this matter."
But this is a question about fundamental rights, say the plaintiffs, rather than a political issue.
"The New Jersey constitution does hold out a very high standard of equal protection," says Niose. "We
certainly see it as a jurisdiction that should protect atheists and humanists from this kind of discrimination,
no question about it."

Citation:
You can copy and paste this information into your own documents.

Bruinius, Harry. "Atheists' New Plan of Attack Against Pledge of Allegiance..." Christian Science Monitor. 22
Apr. 2014: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 05 Feb. 2015.

Forcing Pledge Broke Rules

By Danny Valentine

A teacher is suspended five days after making a fourth-grader participate.

The fourth-grader at Explorer K-8 School stood silently on Sept. 11, hands by his side, as his
classmates recited thePledge of Allegiance.
A Jehovah's Witness forbidden from worshiping objects, the boy's behavior was not unusual. He had
never joined his peers in the ritual of placing his right hand on his heart. He had never spoken the
words: "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which
it stands ..."
But that morning was different.
As the students recited, teacher Anne Daigle-McDonald took the boy's wrist and placed his hand over
his heart. He protested, pulling his arm down and reminding her he was a Jehovah's Witness.
"You are an American, and you are supposed to salute the flag," Daigle-McDonald said, according to a
statement the boy gave to a school administrator.
The next day, Daigle-McDonald again placed the boy's hand over his heart.
She then addressed the class.
"In my classroom, everyone will do the pledge; no religion says that you can't do the pledge,"
several students told a school administrator, according to a report. "If you can't put your hand on your
heart, then you need to move out of the country."
The issue is one that has cropped up in school districts across the country for decades: Do students
have a right to opt out of the Pledge of Allegiance?
In the Hernando County School District, the answer is clear: Yes.
The district recently concluded an investigation into the incidents, finding that Daigle-McDonald
violated a number of state education rules, professional conduct principles and the student's right to
free speech and freedom of religion.
On Oct. 7, superintendent Lori Romano suspended the teacher for five days without pay. DaigleMcDonald, who has been with the district for nine years, was issued a formal letter of reprimand and
instructed to attend diversity training. The misconduct was also reported to the state.

"Regardless of the circumstances that may have brought them about, such inappropriate actions on
your part do not reflect positively on your position," Romano's letter stated.
The right not to participate in the pledge extends to all students - not just those who invoke a
religious exception, according to the district's student code of conduct manual.
Students have the right to choose whether to participate in patriotic or religious activities, according to
a section on student rights and responsibilities.
The right for students to opt out of the pledge dates to a 1943 Supreme Court ruling, West Virginia
State Board of Education vs. Barnette, said Catherine Cameron, a media law professor at Stetson
University in Gulfport.
"Ever since then, it has been unconstitutional to force a child to salute the flag or say
the Pledge of Allegiance (in a public school)," she said. "This teacher may not have been well versed
under the First Amendment."
In a conference with Heather Martin, the Hernando district's executive director of business services,
Daigle-McDonald told her version of the story.
She was aware that the boy was a Jehovah's Witness, but not that he couldn't say the pledge.
"His mother told me that he didn't celebrate holidays or birthdays, and I told her that was fine," the
teacher said.
She said that he had been drawing or doodling in previous days.
He seemed confused, she said. Some other kids were also not reciting the pledge.
On Sept. 11, the 12-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks in New York City, Washington, D.C., and
western Pennsylvania, she said she didn't want the boy to be distracted and was worried "the other
children might imitate him."
She said she made statements to the class about reciting the pledge, but never directed them solely
at the boy.
Martin told her that nearly all of the students who were interviewed indicated that, on Sept. 12, the
day after the first incident, she told the class that those who didn't want to say the pledge should
move back to their home country.
"But that's not what I said," Daigle-McDonald responded. "It was directed at citizenship. I was talking
about pledging allegiance to our country, and if you don't want to pledge to our country, you should
go to your home country."

In a conference with the district, Daigle-McDonald, who did not return calls from the Times, said she
wanted to apologize to the boys' parents.
"(I) just wanted all of the students to respect the day," she said. "It wasn't a holiday, so I didn't see
why the whole class couldn't say the pledge."
The boy's parents declined to speak with the Times.
Contact Danny Valentine at dvalentine@tampabay.com or (352) 848-1432. On Twitter:
@HernandoTimes.

Backstory: Is America Pledging Less?

The schoolkid's mantra is more legally mandated than

ever, but recited less than ever.

By Chris Gaylord
Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
Students Recite the Pledge
CANTON, Mass.--A familiar "Good morning" rings over the Hansen
School loudspeaker, calling the children of Claire Lund's first grade class
to their feet. Ms. Lund reminds her pack of 6- and 7-year-olds to place
their pint-sized paws over their hearts, face the stars and stripes,
and pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

A ritual on the wane: Firstgraders at The Hansen School

in Canton, Mass., stand to
recite the pledge. (PHOTO BY
JOANNE CICCARELLO STAFF)

It's a slice of Americana: Little kids mangling big words as they're introduced to the patriotic
principles of liberty, allegiance, and an indivisible republic.
It's also an American ritual: Every morning, kids from kindergarten to high school recite the 31word salute.
Or do they?
A generation ago, it was nearly impossible to get through the American public school system
without learning the oath--and equally impossible to forget it after so much practice.
Today, though, ask kids if they know the pledge and you're increasingly likely to get a blank stare.
Veronica Baccki, a talkative second-grader in a Needham, Mass., public school flies through "of the
United States of America" just fine. But then there's a long pause. She stares at the ceiling with her
mouth open, then gives an embarrassed smile and covers her eyes, working to summon the next line.
"We learned what the pledge means, but it was a while ago and I forgot," she says, regaining her
confidence after finally puttering to the pledge's end. "Some people in my class forget the words too.
They look at the signs in the front of the room with words on it. Even some fifth-graders [who lead the
rest of the school] will sing it and forget."
But fifth-graders aren't the only big kids scratching their heads. Ask the under-30 crowd to recite
the pledge, and you might get an embarrassed petering out at around "...for which it stands."
So is the pledge fading into folklore? Waning like the words of the national anthem?
"Certainly since the Vietnam War, the pledge has decreased in influence and meaning," says Bruce
Schulman, a professor of modern American history at Boston University. "A lot of 20- and 30-year-olds

can't even recite it now."

There are no numbers to prove the pledge is waning. In fact, since 9/11 more state and town laws
actually require students to say the Pledge ofAllegiance than ever. But anecdotally, Professor
Schulman says he's noticed the pledge's importance diminish over time.
While still pithy and patriotic, "the pledge now takes a compulsory nature and doesn't have as
much meaning as it did, maybe, 15 years ago," he says. "[For] those 20-year-olds that do remember
the words, I bet it's something like remembering the lyrics to a song that was popular in high school."
Ambushed with a request to recite the pledge, Sarah Garrison, a 22-year-old Los Angeles movie
production assistant, breaks into slow, nervous laughter just after "...and to the Republic."
"I'm kinda surprised at myself," says Ms. Garrison, who attended Texas public schools. "We said
the pledge a lot--maybe not every day, but a lot. And yet, now, I'm reaching, but there's nothing
there." To her credit, she recalls the entire oath after a few minutes, but her memory still takes a little
nudging.
That young adults are struggling to string together the pledge is no surprise to Scot Guenter. Over
several years of teaching a course on patriotism at San Jose State University, in California, he's found
that his undergraduates have absorbed little about American civil traditions. Few know the words to
the national anthem. Even fewer know any other patriotic songs. Almost all of the students said
the Pledge of Allegiance in grade school, but he says the number drops off sharply by junior high.
"My suspicion is that the Vietnam War is about when people began questioning rituals like
the pledge," says Mr. Guenter. "And as that generation emerged as today's teachers and principals-and parents--they likely brought with them that questioning."
Why recite the pledge? Why every day? Are we proud of America?
At Bainbridge High School, a suburban Seattle public school, these questions go not to the
administration, but to students. Social studies classes use the pledge to ask what it means to be an
American.
"It generates pretty good discussion," says Bainbridge associate principal Dean Fritts. And while he
thinks legislation compelling kids to pledgeallegiance is "dumb, bad lawmaking," the pledge offers a
shared starting point to discuss patriotism.
"For the most part, I think our students see the pledge as reaching for the American ideal," he
says. "There are students who have knee-jerk...liberal reactions toward it, and there are teachers who
I have to talk to because they think those students who refuse to say the pledge are...disrespecting
the beauty of this country."
Debates over the salute, local and national, can be particularly prickly--even winding up before the
Supreme Court on several occasions. Serious supporters see it as a sacred tradition--the spoken
equivalent of the flag to which they pledge. Extreme opponents call it the indoctrinization of God and
country on impressionable youth.

But, these are the fringes. The wane of the pledge from American life is more tied to indifference
than passion, says Barbara Truesdell, assistant director of Indiana University's Center for the Study of
History and Memory.
"It used to be we'd hear it at town meetings and public gatherings," she says. Now, "it's just not a
part of daily life."
The decline is perhaps most apparent in the classroom--particularly blue-state high schools.
"I don't know of any high schools in the area in which the pledge is recited daily. It isn't here,"
admits a superintendent of a largely liberal suburban Boston school district who asked not to be
named because of how contentious the subject can be. "If I insisted on it being recited here--which is
not my plan or desire--my career would begin a quick and flaming descent."
But what about the laws in Massachusetts--and more than 40 other states--mandating
the pledge?
The actual letter of Bay State law demands students say the pledge every morning. It even
imposes a $5 fine on teachers who refuse or forget to lead the students for two weeks. But this law
has been unenforced since 1977, the year the current wording was passed, says Kathleen LeBlanc, a
legal officer with the state Department of Education. That's because forcing students, or teachers, to
say the pledge violates a different American institution: the First Amendment.
Simply put, if students don't want to say the pledge, they don't have to. They can sit quietly at
their desks or, in some schools, may continue their conversation over the rest of the class. If a teacher
doesn't want to say it, he doesn't have to. A student volunteer can lead the pledge, or the principal
can recite it over a loudspeaker.
All that Massachusetts public schools have to provide is the opportunity to say the pledge daily.
How much kids learn about the pledge is all at the discretion of their individual teachers, says
Hansen principal Bill Griffin, as he leads a visitor to Ms. Lund's class.
The Canton schools have said the pledge every day "for as long as I can remember," says
superintendent Irene Kaplan. She hasn't discussed thepledge with other superintendents. She
assumed saying it daily was a given. "It's a tradition. We say it in every grade. We're consistent," she
says. "We're patriots."
While Lund's first-graders have been saying the Pledge of Allegiance for two months, she says
this fall day is perfect for a visitor because, "just yesterday I went over the meaning of
the pledge with the class. Now they know what all the words mean."
Well, maybe not all the words. "Indivisible" takes them a few tries. One boy in an oversized rugby
shirt confidently reminds the group it means "freedom." A ponytailed classmate eagerly raises her
hand to correct him: "It means you can't be seen."