Under God, With Liberty and Justice for All
The Pledge of Allegiance has been recited through the hallways of American public schoolhouses for centuries. This anthem to America starts each school day by students pledging and appreciating the freedoms and liberties America provides to citizens of the United States. The issues surrounding this Iconic American Symbol are these simple but valiant words, “Under God”. These words have caused lawsuits forcing the Supreme Court answer the following questions: 1. Do these words impede our First Amendment rights as Americans? 2. Can we force our youth to say them within our public schools? The First Amendment is vague, therefore both sides of the argument can be validated, this leading to a forced decision by the Supreme Court of the United States.
Since 1892 when Francis Bellany originally composed the Pledge, it has been through many changes. The Pledge did not originally have the words “Under God” in it. It original read, “ I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the republic which it stands, one nation indivisible, the liberty and justice for all” (Pledge, 2013). This version changed many times until in 1954 (Keith, 2008). According to the United States Flag Code was changed to “I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United states of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, and liberty and justice for all” and this has remained the version in place, although challenged many times, until present. The debate about reciting “Under God” continues as both sides of the issue continue to bring forth lawsuits across the country (Pledge, 2013).
The objections to reciting “under God” are that our country is built freedoms in a democratic republic and for...
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Editorial: Is God Here to stay? It’s a miracle! Ninth Circuit judges side with ’one nation under God’. (2010, March 13, 2010). Augusta Chronicle, The (GA).
Freedom From Religion Foundation. (2013). Pledge of Allegiance. Retrieved from http://ffrf.org/faq/state-church/item/14030-pledge-of-allegiance
Keith, R. (2008, February 12, 2008). New pledge ruckus under way in Lodi: Parents object to ’under God’ [Newspaper Source]. The Record.
More Presidents’ Quotes. (“n.d.”). Retrieved from http://usaheritage.org/presquotes.html
Pledge of Allegiance. (2013, November 14, 2013). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from http:/www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/09/04/5-facts-about-pledge-of-allegiance
Russo, C. J. (2004, June 1, 2004). The Supreme Court and Pledge of Allegiance: Does God Still Have a Place in American Schools? . Brigham Young University Education and Law Journal, 301-330.
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 ...
In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt recognized the place that religion holds in democracy. “Religion, by teaching man his relationship to God, gives the individual a sense of his own dignity and teaches him to respect himself by respecting his neighbor's. Democracy, the practice of self-government, is a covenant among free men to respect the rights and liberties of their fellows. International good faith, a sister of democracy, springs from the will of civilized nations of men to respect the rights and liberties of other nations of men. In a modern civilization, all three—religion, democracy and international good faith—complement and support each other” (Franklin D. Roosevelt: State of the Union message). This statement supported the idea that religion is associated with a well functioning government. However, in the case of Everson v. Board of Education it was stated that, “The First Amendment has erected a wall between church and state. That wall must be kept high and impregnable. We could not approve the slightest breach” (Hugo Black). This case occurred after Roosevelt’s presidency, and left a significant impact on the American government, as it made clear that religion had no place in the government (Hugo Black). In recent years, a larger disconnect between the church and the American court systems has been created with the nationwide
Every morning over 75 million students around the nation recite the Pledge of Allegiance verbatim (Digest of Education Statistics). If one walks up to one of these students and asks them about the meaning and the origin of this pledge, what would they say? Nothing. However, even though more than a million students recite these words every day, not more than half probably know the true meaning behind these words. One cannot deny the fact that most of these children just want to get this pledge “over with” to continue talking to their peers. The Pledge of Allegiance has gone through several changes since Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, wrote it in 1892. The pledge acts as a source of patriotism, national pride and controversy. The statement, “under God” has caused much controversy and has created a distinct line between the supporters and non supporters of the pledge. America, which famously provides one with true equality, ironically has a pledge that goes against its doctrine and foundations. The changes that occur throughout the years to the pledge that results in its undeniable controversy and losing value. The adjustments lead to the pledge’s undeniable ambiguity and the nation should revert to its previous 1924 pledge.
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...
How the judicial branch rules in cases relating to the 1st and how they relate that to all the rights of public school students. This includes anything from flag burning to not saluting the flag to practicing religion in school. The main point of this paper is to focus on the fact that schools have a greater ability to restrict speech than government.
He submitted his pledge to the Youth’s Company hoping that people in any country could show their patriotism. His original pledge said, “ I Pledge Allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands; one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” Intending for this to be a world wide pledge of allegiance there was no reference, to any specific religion. In 1942, the pledge became part of the US Flag Code, but it wasn’t until 1954 that president Eisenhower and Congress agreed to incorporate “Under God.” The phrase “Under God” implies that the United States has an established religion. Stated in the first amendment of the constitution, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” (The Declaration of Independence: Full Text). It is my belief that it is unconstitutional to incorporate “Under God” into the Allegiance, because it establishes a
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
In 1971 in Mobile County Alabama the School Board created a state statute that set aside time at the beginning of each day for silent ’meditation’ (statute 6-1-20), and in 1981 they added another statute 16-1-20.1 which set aside a minute for ‘silent prayer’ as well. In addition to these, in 1982 the Mobile County School Board enacted statute 16-1-20.2, which specified a prayer that teachers could lead ‘willing’ students in “From henceforth, any teacher or professor in any public educational institution within the State of Alabama, recognizing that the Lord God is one, at the beginning of any homeroom or any class, may pray, may lead willing students in prayer, or may lead the willing students in the following prayer to God… “ (Jaffree By and Through Jaffree v. James). Ishmael Jaffree was the father of three students, Jamael Aakki Jaffree, Makeba Green, and Chioke Saleem Jaffree, who attended a school in Mobile County Alabama. Jaffree complained that his children had been pressured into participating in religious activities by their teachers and their peers, and that he had requested that these activities stopped. When the school did nothing about Jaffree’s complaints he filed an official complaint with the Mobile County School Board through the United States District Courts. The original complaint never mentioned the three state statutes that involved school prayer. However, on June 4, 1982 Jaffree changed his complaint. He now wanted to challenge the constitutionality of statutes 16-1-20, 16-1-20.1 and 16-1-20.2, and motioned for a preliminary injunction. The argument against these state laws was that they were an infringement of the Establishment Clause within the First Amendment of the Constitution, which states that Congr...
Religion is one of the most controversial issues in society today. The concern of allowing prayer in schools is an on-going debate and has resulted in numerous lawsuits. Religious school clubs, after school activities, curriculums, and moments of silence during school are just a few of the court cases that judges have administered. People in favor of prayer in schools believe that their children can only learn certain values through religious practice. On the other hand, an individual against religious practice in schools views this issue as an infringement on his or her children’s rights as Americans.
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.
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).
Throughout the twentieth century, the United States Supreme Court has protected students’ rights to practice their religious beliefs, so long as they are not “disruptive, discriminatory, or coercive to peers who may not share those same beliefs” (Education Weekly, 2003, para. 3). In 1943, the Supreme Court ruling in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette stated that students could not be “forced to salute the flag or say the pledge of allegiance if it violates the individual’s conscience” (First Amendment Cyber Tribune, 2002). The 1963 decision in Engel v. Vitale made school prayer unconstitutional, and similarly found school prayer at graduation ceremonies in its 1992 Lee v. Weisman decision (First Amendment Cyber Tribune, 2002). Student-led prayer at public school football games was found unconstitutional in 2000 with the Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe (First Amendment C...
As recited by former Governor of Minnesota, “There is much more to being a patriot and a citizen than reciting the pledge or raising a flag”. To pledge allegiance to the flag means to take a patriotic vow, that you will do everything in your power to fight to protect and keep the freedoms that you have been blessed with, safe. I believe that if you pledge allegiance to the
The United States has continued to be a country where religion plays a major role in the lives of American citizens. Depending on the type of school students attend, organized prayer is mandatory, allowed, or banned. In the United States, organized prayer in public schools is prohibited because it goes against the Constitution’s separation of church and state (Jinkins 123). The United States promises religious freedom, but is yet to define the degree and limitation of that liberty. However, American citizens have been debating for many years, whether organized prayer should be an option or obligation in public schools. Some people believe that organized prayer or religious classes would be a benefit to young people and should be allowed in American public schools. Others: however, see this as an affront to the First Amendment and believe that religion does not belong in the classroom, and should never be permitted under any circumstances.