The Pledge of Allegiance

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At the beginning of each day in many public and private schools around the country, students stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance. In fact, 35 states have passed laws mandating that the Pledge be recited on a daily basis. This issue has been a source of controversy for years. On one side of the argument exists families and educators who believe in the citizenship and patriotism that reciting the Pledge brings (Chiodo, 2011). On the opposing side, families and educators argue the possible threat to an individual’s First Amendment freedoms. 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). Many parents, educators, and school officials defend the Pledge of Allegiance and other rituals and symbols for the themes of ... ... middle of paper ... ...llegiance without any examination of its meaning and history; 2) Participants agreed that the Pledge should be an important aspect of public education; 3) Participants identified the Pledge as “educationally valuable” as it is useful in transmitting shared values of loyalty, respect, patriotism, and common beliefs for the future. In conclusion, advocates for mandating the Pledge of Allegiance in schools justify their beliefs claiming that the Pledge has pedagogical value. These supporters seek to use it as a tool to share themes of community, loyalty, and respect in the midst of social diversity and change. Opponents on the other hand, disagree that the Pledge has any educational value and instead believe that it violates a person’s First Amendment rights. They ultimately seek to demonstrate that the Pledge is ineffective in transmitting values in public school.

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