The words “Under God” was added into the Pledge of Allegiance in 1892 (Nobleman PN). Those two words have been the source of controversy ever since then. The Pledge of Allegiance represents much more than what is at the surface. To some they feel that it does not fully represent them and their beliefs. The main argument is that some people do not feel comfortable saying “under God” for the reason that it goes against their religious beliefs. In America freedom of religion allows any individual to believe in what their religion preaches and that right cannot be belittled.  The controversy at hand is that some people believe that as citizens of the United States of America it is our duty to respect the flag and recite the pledge. The pledge is something that a lot of elementary, middle and high schools implicated into their morning announcements every single day. Students should not be penalized for not saying the pledge, it is not a matter of disrespect or obliteration, it is simply a right of the people. The respected symbol of America, the flag, should be respected but no one person should be forced to say the pledge, nor should any child be penalized for refusing to say it.    

Students should not be penalized for refusing to say, The Pledge of Allegiance. America would not be what it is today if it were not for the people who fought for the independence of this country. The Revolutionary War was a fight for freedom, a fight that was well fought and won by America. As a result of our country's independence, The Bill of Rights was ratified completely and approved in August of 1791. The Bill of Rights is a list of rights that limits government power, rights that our country fought so hard for and the first amendment states, “Freedom of Religion, Speech, and the Press”. This is important because students who prefer not to say the pledge are most likely not doing it to be malicious, they refuse it because of two words stated, “under God”. No one student should be singled out from not saying the pledge, nor should a student be rewarded for saying it. This has been an ongoing controversy and there are examples of incidents where student’s rights were tested: 

“In late 2014, a 17-year-old agnostic student in Tracy, Calif., received a double whammy when he refused to say “under God” in the Pledge. As part of a speech and debate class, West High School student Derek Giardina was assigned to lead the school in the Pledge 12 times during the year. The first two times he said “under God” over the school’s public-address system. The third time, he omitted the religious reference. In response, Giardina received detention and lost points on his assignment, reported a Sacramento television station” (Brown PN).

 It is important that the rights of students in schools are protected because so many schools worldwide are implicated in the schooling system. Historically, the insertion of “under God” in the pledge has caused a lot of controversy because what most people do not know is, “Lawmakers added God to the Pledge in part to differentiate America from what they called the ‘godless communists’” of the Soviet Union. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who believed that the government could use generic religious language to spur patriotism, signed the measure into law” (Brown). Ideally, in America, no one religion is more important than another and that is backed up by freedom of religion. Some courts fight, however, that the pledge is a “patriotic exercise” (Brown). Ultimately, it does not matter why a student does not want to participate in reciting the pledge because has for as the constitution is concerned the right for those individuals are protected. Without any further discussion it is clearly stated that it is unconstitutional for a student, or any person, to be penalized by a teacher or anyone else for not saying the pledge.   

The argument of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or to no recite the Pledge of Allegiance is not limited to but is highly argued over two words, “under God”. These two words create so much discussion and retaliation due to the discussion of God. One of the most admiring aspects of being a citizen of the United States of America is the Freedom of Religion. There is an estimated value of 4,200 religions in the world and as a US citizen you can be any religion you desire to be. If a person’s religion is to not believe in God, then that person should not be subjected into saying “under God” or the Pledge of Allegiance at all. In the article, The Pledge of Allegiance: ‘under God’ is under scrutiny, investigate whether or not “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The article reveals, “that in light of legal standards, the phrase ‘under God’ is indeed unconstitutional” (Arakel 35). This article also highlights that any school system who forces students to say the Pledge of Allegiance is violating the student’s constitutional rights. An example of this is stated in the article previously mentioned:

“Barnette was a Jehovah’s Witness who could not participate in saluting the flag due to his religious conviction that the flag depicts an “image” which their God commands them not to adulate. The school administrators took what they thought were appropriate measures for dealing with the insubordination, and expelled the child” (Arakel 36). 

This is just one of many times students were unrightfully punished for not saying the Pledge of Allegiance. There is evidence that even the Supreme Court supports the removal of the words “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance. If our nation's Supreme Court even agrees with the removal, there are is not reason students should be punished. 

There are laws that protect people's rights, one right being that as a US citizen you are not obligated to say the Pledge of Allegiance. It is stated to be unconstitutional to punish students for not saying the pledge but that appears to not be enough. A video was published to the CBS local San Francisco in 2016. The CBS article, “NorCal Students Who Skipped Pledge of Allegiance Gets Grades Docked”, is a story about two young girls that had their grades lowered just because they did not stand for the pledge. Leilani Thomas is a Native American and she argues, “the Stars and Stripes are not hers” (Turner PN). Leilani Thomas and the other student who refused to say the Pledge of Allegiance had their grades suffer from their actions. Actions they took because they legally have every right to not say the pledge. The school, once aware of the incident, took a stand behind the two students. The two student who were unjustifiably punished in an unprofessional way. Fortunately for them, and for any other American, our rights are protected.  

There are two separate viewpoints when it comes to the Pledge of Allegiance in schools; the teachers and the students. From a student's viewpoint, there are many different takes on saying the Pledge of Allegiance every single day and what it means. For some students it is a meaningless repetition of words that are pinned into student’s brains from reciting it for as long as they could remember. Some students put a little more thought into the pledge and believe that saying the Pledge of Allegiance is reassuring the loyalty and patriotism that American citizens have. Teachers on the other hand, have a different interpretation of the saying the pledge. Most teachers believe that students should stand up and say the pledge while saluting the flag because it is out of respect for the country we live in. Some may even believe that out of respect to them and being a member in their classroom a student should have to say it. This is when more controversy is played out because not all students neglect saying the pledge to be disrespectful; just as not all teachers think their students should say the pledge just because they think everyone should be forced to say it. A case study was developed by Leisa Martin and it focused on education and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. In the study high school students were asked to complete a questionnaire and follow-up interviews regarding their interpretation of the pledge. Although the case study cannot be proven causation with association, it was simply created to examine major themes. Major themes did in fact derive from the study, 

“From the analysis of the questionnaire, interviews with the students, conversations with the teacher, and class observations three themes emerged: the development of loyalty and patriotism, the pledge becoming a meaningless series of words because of constant repetition, and the pledge promoting limited commitment to active participation” (Martin PN).

 And of course the students who do not say the pledge for religious reasons and another theme that may be seen more in different schools. The viewpoints of teachers are different because the teachers that force students to say the pledge are the individuals that do not have anything against the pledge. If a teacher does not understand why a student is refusing the pledge they may look at it as the student being disrespectful. If a student is actually being disrespectful and a distribution then a teacher may say something to the student, but not regarding the act of the student refusing the pledge. There have been court cases where a teacher punishes a student for not saying the pledge or forces the student to stand. According to Jay Michelson's article an incident in Chicago on this discussion was brought to court. The article states, “a 15-year-old high school sophomore refused to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance, saying ‘America sucks’ and ‘doesn’t support black people’ According to the child and his mother, his teacher tried to force him out of his chair” (Michelson PN). This is a case where the teacher has the right to discipline the student for yelling in her classroom but the teacher cannot punish him for not wanting to say the pledge. It is also argued that not all teacher know that the law protects a student's right to not have to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. If schools would like to see an increase in participation or a better understanding of what the pledge means, then they can only go as far as further educating their students on the Pledge of Allegiance. 

The pledge is something many elementary school and middle school students grew up saying but many do not even know the meaning behind it. As it was previously stated, a case study was developed to look into recurring themes of a student's interpretation of the significance of the Pledge of Allegiance. A closer look into the themes could potentially help students develop a better understanding of saying the pledge. The first theme was the development of loyalty and patriotism, “The Pledge of Allegiance was developed to promote socialization and instill a love of country, and it generally achieved its mission with the students in this study. For example, in the survey, when the students were asked what they thought about when they said the pledge, the most common response was honoring the nation” (Martin PN). Many students believe that saying the Pledge of Allegiance is a way for people to pay respect to our nations troops who continue to fight for our freedom. When it is thought about that way it makes sense as to why people think that the pledge should be said. Although, some people think that way the majority of people from this study believe that the pledge is just a meaningless series of words. It is not even a lack of respect it is simply because the pledge has lost its meaning over the years of continuous repetition with no explanation. One response states, “I love my country, I'm just not really concerned with the pledge. It's rather annoying at this point. I feel that I've already Pledged my Allegiance to the U.S. by not doing anything wrong” (Martin PN). This is a strong statement because it stresses the point that not many students even know the meaning behind the pledge. No student should be forced to recite something that they do not even know the meaning of. The pledge is a common tradition in schools and yes they do not even take the time to explain the meaning behind it and yet they expect their students to say it.

The Pledge of Allegiance represents much more than what is at the surface. This is why many people get defensive when Americans refuse to say it, the pledge is not meaningless. The Pledge of Allegiance was written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy and it was first said by students in 1892. The pledge was written to be said in front of the American flag, “the Pledge of Allegiance for our flag” (Nobleman PN). The American flag is a symbol of freedom in this country and should be respected and people believe that the Pledge of Allegiance is a way to honor our nation. Some people strongly believe that saying the pledge is a display of patriotism, one man in specific, James B. Upham. Upham was a man imbued with patriotic fever who expressed, “It was my thought that a vow of loyalty or allegiance to the flag should be the dominant idea” (Bellamy 2). Beyond the Pledge of Allegiance: Hostility to Religious Expression in the Public Square is a document straight from the US Government Documents that expresses what is below the surface. The document holds discussion from government officials who state that saying the pledge is, “simply patriotic to recite”, “hostility to faith is wrong, and it is without constitutional basis” (Beyond the Pledge of Allegiance PN). This is important people it is an example of why people get defensive or angry when people refuse the pledge. For patriotic people pledging your allegiance to the flag is a sign of respect. It is not a matter of denying a person of their right to exercise freedom of religion or faith openly. 

Religious argument or not the pledge is also known to have nothing to do with religion. The pledge represents the men and women who fought for freedom, and if you disrespect that you should be punished. People argue that they do not want to take part in the pledge for religious reasons but in a document previously referred to, Beyond the Pledge of Allegiance: Hostility to Religious Expression in the Public Square, is highly credible and statements from State of Honor Chet Edwards not for or against God but for the people on both sides of the argument. Edwards states that we should respect the fact that people who do not want to participate in saying the pledge because they are people of faith and believe that they are fighting for their religion. “What they are fighting for is to protect religious freedom from Government entanglement” (Beyond the Pledge of Allegiance PN). Edwards proceeds to express that there is no need for division in our country, a place where we came together against nation crisis’. Edwards says we should practice what we preach, the Bill of Rights states a law, religious freedom. The Founding Fathers were wise men who purposely put religion and religious freedom on a pedestal, they knew that this right was far too important to be left in the hands of just anyone. “The First Amendment specifically protects private religious expression in the public square by guaranteeing both the free exercise of religion and freedom of speech against Government interference” (Beyond the Pledge of Allegiance PN). Whether people believe the sole purpose of the Pledge of Allegiance is patriotic or not every individual has the freedom to not say the pledge and not have to fear punishment.

All in all, students should not be punished, and the teachers that punish their students should have consequences. While many teachers may disagree with these students not standing up for the Pledge of Allegiance; or when students do not say the pledge at all it should not be their concern. Many students believe that the Pledge of Allegiance does not correctly display their respect for our nation. It is not a matter of respecting the country or not, it is the fact that citizens of the US have freedom. The main argument is that some people do not feel comfortable saying “under God” for the reason that it goes against their religious beliefs. The pledge is implicated in a lot of elementary, middle and high schools in their morning announcements every single day. Students have every right to either say the Pledge of Allegiance or to sit in their chair and not recite it at all.  Americans should be proud to live in this country but they also should never have the fear of their rights being contested. No one person should be forced to say the pledge, nor should any child be penalized for refusing to say it.  
