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Pledge of allegiance taken out of school
Pledge of allegiance in schools body of essay
Pledge of allegiance analysus
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Literate review
Subtopic 1: The Pledge and its Christian Connection
In the 1800s, several historical events such as the Civil War, and the increase of immigrants influenced the creation of the Pledge of Allegiance. The Civil War had divided the country in half, and the increase in imamigration fueled the concerns o immigrants not assimilating into the American culture. Francis Bellamy later expressed that he created the Pledge as a vehicle for expressing intelligent patriotism, not only love of the country but also the nation’s ideals (Jones and Meyer, 2010). Today, the Pledge is recited across America by millions of school children without knowing the history, and the affirmation of Christian Almighty entailed with it. The Pledge started
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State religiosity directly correlates with the existence or lack of laws regarding the Pledge of Allegiance. The law regarding the Pledge will be stricter, and laws regarding other religious activities will be lenient, if a state has high religious population.
Methodology:
This qualitative case study is an approach to research State Religiously and its effects on the bills that have passed. I will be using the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance as the main example of use of religion. The main focus is the “under God” phrase in the Pledge of Allegiance. I will be using multiple sources to ensure that the issue is explored through variety of lenses.
I will be using the following books:
I. “The Pledge” by Jeffery Owen Jones and Peter Meyer
II. “Does God Belong in Public School” by Kent Greenawalt
III. “Religion and Public Education” by Theodore L. Sizer
I will be using following articles:
I. “Examining the Pledge of Allegiance” by Leisa Martin
II. “Under God and Anti-Community: How the Pledge of Allegiance got Religion in Cold War America” by Lee Canipe
III. “The Pledge of Allegiance and the Meanings and Limits of Civil Religion” by Grace Y. Kao and Jerome Copulsky
IV. “Theology Scholarships, the Pledge of Allegiance, and Religious Liberty: Avoiding the Extremes but Missing the Liberty” by Douglas
The Supreme Court case in Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow result in a unanimous ruling that the phrase “under God” may remain in the Pledge of Allegiance as narrated in public school classrooms. The court made the decision because the atheist father did not have grounds to sue the school district on behalf of his daughter. While the ruling was made on the Flag Day, it did not meet the clear endorsement of the constitutionality of the pledge as sought by President Bush and leaders of Republican and Democratic Parties in Congress. Notably, the eight judges who participated in the case had voted to turn over a federal appeals court decision in 2003 that would have prohibited the use of the phrase in public schools as an infringement of the constitutional outlaw on state-sponsored religion. A majority of these justices i.e. five made that ruling on procedural grounds in which Michael A. Newdow, the atheist, did not have legal reasons to sue the school district (Lane, 2004).
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 ...
[12] Thomas Jefferson, A Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom, Draft (1799) reprinted at <http://members.tripod.com/~candst/tnppage/statute.htm> [10 December 2003]
Drey, Riley. "Misguided Patriotism and the Pledge of Allegiance." LDS Liberty. Riley Drey, 24/11/2010. Web. 24 March 2012.
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.”
With sounds of youthful laughter, conversations about the students’ weekends, and the shuffling of college ruled paper; students file into their classrooms and find their seats on a typical Monday morning. As the announcements travel throughout the school’s intercoms, the usual “Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance” becomes no longer usual but rather puzzling to some students. “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, indivisible, with liberty, and justice for all.” Confusion passes through some of the student’s minds. With the reoccurrence of “God” in the backdrop of American life, the relationship between church and state has become of little to no matter for American citizens just as it has with American students. While congress makes no law respecting an establishment of religion, the term “freedom of religion” presents itself to no longer be the definition of “free”, while also having its effects on debates today. According to Burt Rieff, in Conflicting Rights and Religious Liberty, “Parents, school officials, politicians, and religious leaders entered the battle over defining the relationship between church and state, transforming constitutional issues into political, religious, and cultural debates” (Rieff). Throughout the 20th century, many have forgotten the meaning of religion and what its effects are on the people of today. With the nonconformist society in today’s culture, religion has placed itself in a category of insignificance. With the many controversies of the world, religion is at a stand still, and is proven to not be as important as it was in the past. Though the United States government is based on separation of church and state, the gover...
The Pledge of Allegiance has become a major issue for students, teachers, parents and lawmakers. The original intention of the pledge was not to stir up trouble, but for a celebration of Christopher Columbus discovery of the new world. The pledge is no longer thought of as a celebration, but an infringement on children's religious beliefs. Do you believe that children's rights are being infringed on? Some people believe that the pledge is a great honor for our country. It has shown, and provided us with great pride just like our American flag. The Pledge of Allegiance being recited in the public school system does not infringe on the students religious beliefs, but is a way for us to honor our country and everything that we have done to get to this point in history.
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”
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).
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
At this time, religion played a major role on the educational system in the sense that all types of religious groups were represented in the American school system, but they were challenged with how they could be loyal to their religions beliefs. With the 'Pledge of Allegiance' present, some people felt as though the values of Americans and the "Creators'" beliefs should be taught in the classrooms. Of course, others felt that religion and school should be separate. As a result of disagreements such as these, many problems arose.
" As it is stated in this quote, no one should be forced to pledge to a god or religion that they do not believe in. This would be the equivalent of having to say “under Allah” or “under Buddha”. There would be protests and petitions trying to remove those words from the pledge. Therefore, having a religious statement in the allegiance is discriminatory. Some people argue that it establishes that our country values religion, but there are many other ways we can show that without using one specific god as an
Should standing for the pledge of allegiance and the national anthem be compulsory? Students today are currently being criticized and bashed for not standing up for the pledge of allegiance and the national anthem. Some students don’t stand due to the fact that it is against their religion practices. Although some people believe they should show respect to soldiers who have fought and died, students should not be required to stand for the pledge and sing the national anthem because the words no longer carry meaning and because it violates first amendment rights.
To have prayer in the public school system is against the idea of separation of church and state. The state should not institute school prayer because the public schools are for education, not a place where religion should be taught (Gaylor, 1995, p. 1). The state should not force every child to say a prayer in the classroom because not everyone believes...
The argument over the separation of church and state has been an ongoing debate without a conclusion, and has always been a topic to speak on. Many people have strong opinions for or against the separation. While some believe that prayer in school is beneficial to the development of children and of their faith, others believe that it could completely criticize their faith by not giving the student the option to explore their beliefs. In the “Resistance to Civil Government” by Henry David Thoreau, the author is passionate about allowing people to beli...