A federal appeals court has ruled that the Pledge of Allegiance is an unconstitutional governmental endorsement of religion, and cannot be recited in public schools.
The phrase “under God” was inserted in 1954 by an act of Congress.
“A profession that we are a nation ‘under God’ is identical, for Establishment Clause purposes, to a profession that we are a nation ‘under Jesus,’ a nation ‘under Vishnu,’ a nation ‘under Zeus,’ or a nation ‘under no god,’ because none of these professions can be neutral with respect to religion,” Judge Alfred T. Goodwin wrote for the three-judge panel.
In the nation’s first ruling of its kind, the court said that when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the 1954 legislation, he wrote that “millions of our schoolchildren will daily proclaim in every city and town, every village and rural schoolhouse, the dedication of our nation and our people to the Almighty.”
I see their point. I really do. I even, intellectually agree with it. But …
I grew up with the PoA in school. It wasn’t until the foofoorah post-9/11 that I realized it was not part of the universal daily ritual of starting school any more. And while I understand the reasoning behind that, and even more the reasoning behind this decision, there is still that powerful sense of common ritual, that extends even beyond what the ritual words actually say.
Everyone had to be quiet. Everyone had to stand up. Everyone, for a few moments, was in unison. And, yeah, that kind of thing can be insidious. But it is also a powerful socialization tool. For those few moments, we were all one classroom. We weren’t brains or dummies or girls or boys or brown-noses or screw-offs. We were all doing one thing.
And that was both kinda neat and, as the court notes, and to the same degree, dangerous.
And up until 1954 students did all those things you mention without the under God part. My father used to talk about that little addition when we did the pledge at some school function which the parents attended (which I guess they don’t do any more). I have no problem with it, but what I want to knwo is this- When did the hand over our hearts from the Pledge of Allegiance transfer to the National Anthem as I see so often today?
I concur that it would be an easy finesse around the PoA problem to go back to the pre-1954 version. That, of course, would be backing down to the Godless Secularists, unless we could couch it in terms of “the version from our grandparents’ era” …
I seem to recall that the hand-over-heart (or hat over heart, if wearing a hat, or saluting for those in uniform) was true for the National Anthem as well as for the PoA, or, in fact, if the flag passes in a parade. I’d have to go back to my old Boy Scout manual to be sure.
I remember leaving out the “under God” for at least a couple of years, or occasionally getting specific with someone like Zeus or Ishtar. Heh. I’d forgotten just how young I was when I went agnostic.
Question: Do the immigrant kids who don’t have citizenship have to say the Pledge of Allegiance when they start school?
Question: When you pledge your allegiance to the US during a citizenship ceremony, do they use the same Pledge of Allegiance and, if so, could your citizenship be removed if you did not say the complete Pledge of Allegiance by omitting the “under God”?
Answer: The 9th Circuit Court evidently feels that, even if they weren’t required to, the setting is socially coercive enough that they would feel bad not doing so.
Answer: I think the Pledge of Allegience is more of a sidelight. There is an oath of citizenship that, if it is like the oaths one takes before giving witness in court, can simply be an “affirmation” without dragging an unbelieved-in deity into it.
I realize I’m late to this game, but I thought I’d answer a question in one of the comments:
Question: When you pledge your allegiance to the US during a citizenship ceremony, do they use the same Pledge of Allegiance and, if so, could your citizenship be removed if you did not say the complete Pledge of Allegiance by omitting the “under God”?
Answer: Professional Skeptic and former magician James Randi related a story about his experience with becoming a citizen on his web site. Being an atheist he explained to the judge that it went against his principles to use the words ‘under God’ when it came time to recite the pledge as part of the process. The judge assured him that he could say or not say the words as per his preference and it wouldn’t make a difference in whether or not he was granted citizenship.
hi i am a student in a small south texas school. I have to do research on a controversial topic. i figured that this is a pretty controversial topic. would anybody mind if i inter view you for my reaserch? I will not use you name except in the interview that only the teacher will see. i will only use 3 of the interviews and i will notify you if i do use you interview just to make sure that you approve. Any responce is gladly recieved. Email German_flash_2004@yahoo.com
Thanks
I’ll send you an e-mail.