I’d like you to all stand up and recite the pledge of allegiance along with me please. I pledge allegiance, to the flag, of the United States of America. To the nation, for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. Now I ask you, how many of you do not believe in a God? You see, the pledge of allegiance has been indoctrinated into us since elementary school. We are blindly following an oath of loyalty to our country, expected to recite what we may or may not believe in. We come from many different backgrounds and many different religions, and who has the right to tell us what we believe in and what we don’t? No one. The pledge of allegiance should not be forced on anyone because it violates key first amendment rights, is a form of brainwashing, and a feature of a totalitarian state.
The pledge of allegiance originally did not include the words, “Under God”, until 1954. This was to combat the horrors of a godless communism. But what does our first amendment rights state? “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech”. By including the words “Under God”, America has recognized one or more religions over others. Doesn’t it violate the key beliefs of our country? Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? All our patriots can talk about is our freedom, but they are willing to manipulate information they give to the public, therefore, controlling the beliefs of the population. Religious toleration is one of the main reasons we created this country. People of all religions came to America escaping persecution, and here we are, trying to violate their freedom of religion.
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...timately should be one’s choice whether to recite it or not. I leave you with this, how do you define freedom? Are you free? Are we any more free than the people oppressed by Nazi Germany? To a state much more liberal than us, we may also appear to be slaves of our own government. Freedom, my friend, is relative.
Works Cited
1. Cornell. "First Amendment." LII / Legal Information Institute. Cornell Law, n.d. Web. 13 Jan. 2014.
2. Greene, Bob, and The Opinions Expressed in This Commentary Are Solely Those of Bob Greene. "The Peculiar History of the Pledge of Allegiance." CNN. Cable News Network, 23 Dec. 2013. Web. 11 Jan. 2014.
3. Merriam-Webster. "Brainwashing." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 14 Jan. 2014.
4. Orwell, George. 1984: A Novel. New York, NY: Published by Signet Classic, 1977. Print.
For this reason, I believe that the Pledge of Allegiance should continue to be recited in American Public Schools, I do however believe that for those with contrasting religious views should be allowed to omit “under God”. They should also be given the choice whether to say the pledge or not. We have amendments in the constitution granted citing freedom of speech to include freedom of religion. I believe that not allowing those with differences of opinion of the pledge would devalue those amendments and would be very contradictory. I grew up in an abusive home as a child and I was unsure of what my purpose and self worth was. I wasn’t an especially patriotic person, but I believe that my time in the Air Force was where I found those things. I was proud to protect others and it gave me a sense of pride to do for others what I could not have done for me in my
The daughter of an atheist, Michael A. Newdow, attended public school in the Elk Grove Unified School District in California, where teachers started school days by leading students in a voluntary narration of the Pledge of Allegiance. The pledge included the phrase “under God”, which was added to it in 1994 through a Congressional act. The atheist sued the school district in federal district court in the state on the basis that making students listen to the phrase even if they were not willing to participate was an infringement on the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. He had argued that his right to influence the religious views of his daugh...
In the 2008 the United States Census Bureau, Self-Described Religious Identification of Adult Population, The Christian faith proved to be the more dominating religion out of all religions. So it would seem the words “Under God” would be beneficial for the majority, the Pledge of Allegiance allures and supports the loyalty of the majority of citizens. The nonbelievers of religion have had the right to not recite the pledge since 1943 but have been asked to quietly stand while the believers recite the pledge in its entirety. Even though leaving out “Under God” is not a difficult task we can clearly see a division has now developed, opposite of bringing the people together. Another example that shows the pledge allures and supports a loyalty to the majority of citizens, the acceptance and encouragement to keep ...
Orwell, George. 1984. New York, New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc., 1949. Sauer, Wolfgang. " Germany." Encyclopedia Americana.
Gwen Wilde wrote an essay on “Why the Pledge of Allegiance Should be Revised.” In this essay, Gwen believes that the words “under God” should be removed from the Pledge of Allegiance. Gwen informs us that the original Pledge did not include “under God” and the words were not added until 1942, therefore, the words can easily be removed. Although some changes have been made to make it clear that the Pledge of Allegiance is for the United States Gwen believes that the words “under God” do not show any support for our country and only make those who do not believe in God feel uncomfortable. Therefore, Gwen believes that “under God” is not appropriate for the Pledge and does not show that we are a Nation that is “indivisible.”
In the survey that was given to students in an English classroom at Riverside Community College on November 19th, 50% of students agreed that children should recite the Pledge of Allegiance while 4% of students disagree. On the other hand, 36% either have mixed views or do not mind either way. Some of the viewpoints of students differ such as the 42% who say they want to follow the traditions that they had for years while 23% do not think it matters, or they do not know enough information about it. A staggering 8% say it goes against their religious beliefs or they find it unconstitutional. The remaining 27% chose the option other such as, saying it is a good way to teach children to respect their country and goes with their religious views, or they do not want others to be ostracized because of their religious beliefs (Survey).
Many students all across America stand and salute to the flag every morning and repeat these words, “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, To the republic for which it stands, one nation, Under God, Indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” There are controversy behind these words of historical allegiance, and that is why many people are refusing to stand for the pledge. This nation was founded upon freedom and liberties, and with those liberties comes with the freedom to choose your religion. The words “Under God”
First, I would like to talk about the history of the Pledge of Allegiance. Many people today recite the Pledge of Allegiance but do not know the history that took place behind it. The Pledge of Allegiance was originally written more than a century ago. The original pledge was: I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic, for which it stands, one Nation, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all . The flag serves as a symbol of our country and its proud traditions of freedom and equal opportunity. In the 1920s, the National Flag Conferences replaced the phrase “my Flag” with “the Flag of the United States of America.” In 1954, Communist threats occurred causing Congress to add the words under God to the pledge. Then 12 years later, Congress reviewed the Pledge of Allegiance and added the words “Under God .” While reciting the Pledge of Allegiance it should be recited by standing placing your
I do not stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. This is a right, shown by the West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette decision that students have the right to refuse to stand and say the Pledge of Allegiance ("West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette"). This 1943 case remains relevant to students today, who do not stand for one reason: they will not pledge themselves to a flag and a country that claims liberty and justice for all but fails to come through. It is clear that America has not achieved and does not achieve its promises of freedom for all, as demonstrated by numerous historical continuities.
Before analyzing the above described controversy, we must first examine the history of the Pledge itself. Written by Francis Bellamy, it was originally titled the “Pledge to the Flag” and was created in the late 1800’s to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America. It originally read: “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and to the republic for which it stands, one Nation, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all” (McCarthy, 2005). Changes were later made to include the words “of the United States” and “of America” to indicate which flag was being referenced. The final changes to the Pledge came in 1954 when it officially became titled the “Pledge of Allegiance” and the words “under God” were added after “one nation.” This addition to the Pledge was meant to support the United States as a religious nation. While signing the law to put this change into effect, President Eisenhower said, “In this way we shall constantly strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country’s most powerful resource in peace and war” (McCarthy, 2005).
I’ve lol been standing for the pledge of allegiance since I was in elementary and never really understood why. Freedom of speech, you say what you want, when you want, and how you want to. It’s your right to stand up or not. “People die for our country.” “Sign of respect for the country we live in.” “Take pride in being an American.” How can we be proud to be American if it only brings negative stereotypes to everyone’s head, it has never been what it preaches to be. Being American is actually embarrassing. Just because I was born here doesn 't mean I have undying loyalty to America, being American means nothing to me, to be truthful.
Works Cited for: Orwell, George. 1984. The 'Standard' of the ' London: Penguin Books, 2008. Print. The.
Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2004. Orwell, George. A. A. 1984. The. New York, NY: Signet Classics, 1977. Print.
Nineteen Eighty-Four. New York NY: Penguin Books Inc., 1977.
Works Cited Orwell, George. 1984 a novel. New York, N.Y: Published by Signet Classic. Print. Runyan, William McKinley.