Before reading this, I want you to think of what defines being an American. Hold onto that and we’ll come back to it later.
We all know from history class that the original settlers of America came over on the Mayflower in 1620, seeking religious freedom. From the moment those 102 settlers landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts, the American dream was born. This dream drove people to reach new heights and cross a boundary of 3,125 miles. The basis for America is rooted in these 102 Puritans pursuing religious freedom. But even now, 395 years and a Supreme Court ruling later, students are expected to stand--regardless of their personal beliefs--face the American Flag, place their hands on their hearts, and recite the words “under God.” These words within the Pledge of Allegiance discriminate against those who are not religious by establishing the connotation that to have patriotism, one must worship or believe in God. People are often confused as to why I don’t say the pledge, but the answer is simple. I don’t feel the need to stand every morning, face my country’s flag, and recite words that I don’t personally believe in. After hearing this, these same people tend to think that that means I’m not a true American or that I don’t love or appreciate my country, just because I don’t want to say these 31 words. But since when was it the American way to dictate someone else’s actions? Just because I choose to sit and stay silent does not mean I don’t respect America or the sacrifices countless people have made to get us to this point. If anything, I’m honoring these sacrifices by exercising the freedom that they have allowed me. But I understand if you think it’s perfectly okay to have a Florida teacher grab one of her students hands and place it over his heart telling him, “You are an american, and you are supposed to salute the flag...and if you don’t want to do that you should move out of the country.” I totally get that. So why should I be considered disrespectful for demonstrating the very freedom that America is founded upon? It is not my responsibility to make sure every single one of my actions does not offend anyone because in reality, any action that I could possibly take is going to offend someone somewhere. No matter the topic there will always be someone that is going to disagree, and I refuse to give up the freedom that I am legally entitled to at risk of offending that person. I attempt to respect my homeroom teachers opinion by not commenting and not actively promoting mine, yet if she is unable to reciprocate that acceptance and calls me downright disrespectful, then I have nothing left to say to her. The right to express my own opinion should not be a debate. I simply choose not to stand for words that I don’t believe should be a part of our nation’s Pledge because if these words are meant to embody everything that America stands for, why does it have to reference God? The first amendment states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,” meaning the government cannot enforce nor promote a religion. By having these two words in the Pledge, America is violating its own constitutional basis, yet no matter how many times a court case comes forward requesting that the words be removed, it is always struck down. On March 11, 2010, a challenge in California was turned down by the federal appeals court for the 9th Circuit, which held that “the Pledge of Allegiance does not violate the Establishment Clause because Congress’ ostensible and predominant purpose was to inspire patriotism.” On May 9, 2014, Massachusetts’ highest court rejected the American Humanist Association’s case finding that the pledge, including its reference to God, is a “fundamentally patriotic exercise, not a religious one.” Now let me ask you this. Since when did believing in God become a characteristic of being an American? At the beginning my of this, I had you think of what it means to be American. Was one of your thoughts “must believe in God”? A majority of people would say no. That is because fundamentally one does not have to believe in God to be an American. And this is where those courts, along with many others, have gone wrong and created the connotation that to have patriotism one must worship or believe in God. Now an argument people often make is that because God is not specific to one definitive religion, then the reference is fine to keep. But this is not the case. Just because it does not point fingers to one religion does not mean it isn’t still telling people what to believe. Mentioning God still promotes a certain set of beliefs, one: that God exists and two: that America and everything else is “under God's” domain. Sure, the word God doesn’t point fingers to a definite religion but it still promotes these beliefs, and the whole reason this section of the first amendment was created was to make sure no religious beliefs were enforced by the government. These words weren’t even an original part of the Pledge of Allegiance. In its primary form the Pledge read “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." The author, Francis Bellamy, had hoped it would be used by citizens in any country. But in 1923, "the Flag of the United States of America" was added. A minor change to simply specify which country. Perfectly understandable. But then, in 1954, President Eisenhower encouraged Congress to add the words “under God”. And do you know why these words were added? Not for their “timeless American value” as many courts claim, but to differentiate the United States from communist ideologies. When America added these words they made the assertion that god was on their side in the war against communism. The words were added because they were and still are a political benefit to gain favor with the American voters as many Americans have a strong faith. It reminded the population that America was better than those “Godless” communists. It was not added for any timeless american value and should not be considered as such by any court. America was founded on the freedom of religion. And there’s a reason why the writers of our constitution stood behind this freedom. They understood that no one should be forced into a belief. I should not be criticized or be considered un American for exercising the freedom that is the basis of America.
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