“Under God” Should Be Removed From The Pledge Of Allegiance

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“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.” You probably recognize the quote above as The Pledge of Allegiance.You also might have noticed that the phrase “under God” has been excluded. For the last few years, a lot of students and their families have been objecting to the religious phrase. The students say that it is a “violation of the separation of church and state” (Conlon).
As an Atheistic high school student, I have to agree with the students objections. Every week, I have to endure the pledge. I awkwardly sit through it. I sit not because I dislike my country, but because we are not one country under God. We are one country under many Gods. We are one country under no God at all. My good friend Ashley, who sits through the pledge with me feels the same. We often have discussions about how uncomfortable it makes us feel, especially when we get looked down upon for not standing up for our country’s pledge. In one of our conversations, she said, “I would stand up if it didn’t mention God. That is my only objection. I hate getting those looks and I hate hearing the whispers about us.” In our opinion, “under God” does more harm than it does good.
Those against the proposition to exclude “under God” say that the people who want it gone are “un-American” (Al-Khatib). That is not the case at all, and it’s not just Atheists who are upset. Agnostics, Buddhists, and Humanists are all working to get it out of The Pledge, as they are among the religions and/or non-religions that do not have gods. Even some people of religions in which “under God” may apply to “agree that the Pledge of Allegiance has been transformed into a r...

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...ying to dodge religion because it keeps coming at them. Americans with no god are still Americans. I believe that someday freedom of religion and separation of church and state will really mean something. We don’t want to be rude, and we don’t want to be a burden; we just want equality.

Works Cited

Al-Khatib, Talal. "Pledge of Allegiance Didn't Always Include God." DNews. Discovery Communications, 11 Sept. 2013. Web. 13 Mar. 2014.
Cline, Austin. "Defending "Under God" - Defending & Justifying "under God" in the Pledge." About.com Agnosticism / Atheism. About.com, n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2014.
Conlon, Kevin. "'Under God' Part of Pledge of Allegiance under Review in Massachusetts." CNN. Cable News Network, 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 11 Mar. 2014.
Jones, Jeffrey Owen. "The Man Who Wrote the Pledge of Allegiance." Smithsonian. Smithsonian Magazine, Nov. 2003. Web. 14 Mar. 2014.

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