cultural-identity, usa, educationMy daughter is about to start attending the 1st grade in a public school in September and I’m not sure how to deal with the unconstitutional pledge of allegiance of 1954.
On one hand I do not want her to say the words “under god” on the other I also do not want to burden her with additional stress of immediately standing out in what will be already a very stressful time.
The most reasonable option seems to be to just tell her to skip those words and thus effectively recite the pledge of 1924 but would like to hear other opinions.
Emotionally, I would really love to finish what Michael Newdow started in 2004 and get this all the way to the supreme court knowing that this time the court will not be able to get away on technicality (noncustodial parent) but I do not have neither the time nor the resources for such a fight… nor would I want my daugher to get caught into everything that would result from such a choice which is not her own…
I have friends and relatives who were raised as Jehovah’s Witnesses, and as children weren’t permitted to say the Pledge of Allegiance, or participate in in-school holiday or birthday activities. They universally were miserable. Kids are like chickens, and will viciously peck at members of the flock who are different.
So while there certainly are more radical options, I think your first impulse to just tell her to skip the words is spot-on. Anything noticeable will be quite unkind to her, painting a big “kick me” target on her back.
First off, you need to find out your school’s official policy on the pledge. If it’s compulsory, you have a legitimate lawsuit on your hands. If it’s optional, then tell her the truth: she doesn’t even need to recite any of it.
This gives you a good teaching moment, actually. While the addition of ‘under god’ in 1954 was regrettable in and of itself, it’s also noteworthy that they teach children to say the words without actually explaining what it is they’re saying. And there’s some pretty big words in there that I wouldn’t expect a 6-year-old to understand. So talk to her about the message of the pledge. I often point out that everything after the word ‘stands’ is factually inaccurate on at least one level. (And I’m undecided about whether this is a republic.)
Also, don’t worry about appearances. At this age, most (if not all) kids will do one of three things anyway:
My son is in first grade now. I had that talk with him a few months ago and he’s fine.
I also wrote a blog entry on the pledge a while back. Here’s what I wrote:
http://jimgphynn.wordpress.com/2010/07/21/one-nation-indivisible/
I’m glad I was taught not to say the pledge like the rest of the sheep. Sure, there where some hard times as I learned what it’s like to stand out in a crowd…but this is an important life skill to learn. It doesn’t stop when we become adults.
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