Thirty-one words are ingrained in our brains forever, thanks to the fact that we attended school in this country:
“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, with liberty and justice for all.”
The pledge was written more than 120 years ago, and Congress formally adopted it in 1942. But it wasn’t until Flag Day in 1954 that the Pledge became a point of controversy.
That year, while the U.S. was fully encapsulated in the Cold War, two words, “under God,” were added to the Pledge to differentiate the U.S. from the concept of communist atheism.
At the time, there wasn’t much to it. A group of Jehovah’s Witnesses challenged the Pledge in the 1950s, but the legal fight against the words “under God” didn’t pick up steam until more recently.
Court cases in 2002 in Massachusetts and 2006 in Florida found in the plaintiffs’ favor, but ultimately, in 2010, the phraseology was upheld by a U.S. Court of Appeals.
Now, a family in New Jersey is suing the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District because, as the American Humanist Association says, the phrase, “marginalizes atheist and humanist kids as something less than ideal patriots.”
The school district’s lawyer says individual students don’t have to participate. A similar case in Massachusetts that is in court could pave the way for a decision in this New Jersey case.
But isn’t this a little ludicrous? Simply saying the Pledge, or having to hear it, does not infringe on a student’s rights. The Pledge is more about history than it is religion, even with the words “under God” included.
Even though many school districts have changed the labels to “winter break” and “spring break,” the reason students get off from school is because of religious holidays — Christmas and Easter. Many school districts also close for the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Religion and history go hand in hand in this country. It’s hard to have one without the other. Our schools teach about this history — through books, homework and tests, but also through breaking for religious holidays and by saying the Pledge. And as long as that history doesn’t violate the Constitution, then we shouldn’t change that history.
