Too young to Pledge?

Recently, while visiting my parents in Michigan, I drove past the grounds of my old elementary school. As construction of a senior living facility continues where Gertrude V. Ealy Elementary once stood, I thought about how much the school and its wonderful faculty shaped the early years of my education and the lessons (both scholastic and life) that I still value today. For six years, the first thing I did each day (after scrambling to finish the previous night’s homework) was stand with my classmates, put my right hand on my heart, and salute the flag waving above the heater in the front-left of the classroom with the Pledge of Allegiance. While I was as proud of my American citizenship as any 6-11 year old, I recited the words not to show off my patriotism, but because my teacher told me to. Little did I know that prior to 1943, choosing not to stand for the Pledge for whatever reason could lead to expulsion, confirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Minersville School District v. Gobitis, 310 US 586 (1940).

In Minersville, a Pennsylvania school district expelled two young followers of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, a religion that prohibits flag-saluting, from their public school for refusing to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance as instructed. While lower Courts initially granted an injunction against expulsion, the Supreme Court reversed holding that the state legislature, not the school district, directed the students to salute the national flag without any exemption for religious beliefs (Minersville, 586, 599). In his Opinion, Justice Frankfurter wrote, “for us to insist that, though the ceremony may be required, exceptional immunity must be given to dissidents, is to maintain that…an exemption…might cast doubts in the minds of the other children which would themselves weaken the effect of the exercise (Id, 599-600).”

A rare event occurred two years later when the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia went against the higher Court’s Minersville ruling in Barnette v. West Virginia State Board of Education, 47 F. Supp. 251 (1942) With similar facts to Minersville, the District Court held that those who are “denied rights and privileges which belong to them as citizens for failing to salute [the Flag] are unquestionably denied that religious freedom which the Constitution guarantees (Id, 253).” That religious freedom includes the right “to do, or forbear to do, any act, for conscience sake, the doing or forbearing of which, is not prejudicial to the public weal (Id, quoting Chief Justice Gibson in Commonwealth v. Lesher, 17 Serg. & R., Ra., 155).” Upon appeal, the Supreme Court concurred stating that “the action of local authorities in compelling the flag salute and pledge transcends Constitutional limitations on their power and invades the sphere of intellect and spirit which it is the purpose of the First Amendment to our Constitution to reserve from all official control (West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 US 629, 642 (1943)).

Although followers of religions prohibiting flag saluting make up a minute minority of our population, the question is why do we teach the Pledge of Allegiance at such a young age? In his Minersville dissent, Justice Stone wrote, “we are dealing with the compulsion of students to declare a belief. They are not merely made acquainted with the flag salute so that they may be informed as to what it is or even what it means (Barnette, 319 US 629, 631).” Isn’t that akin to brain washing?

Despite differing views, the Justices in the above matters seem to agree that there is nothing wrong with promoting patriotism at an early age. “National unity as an end which officials may foster by persuasion and example is not in question (Id at 640).” However, there are other methods to foster American pride in our youth. Instead of a boring and monotonous chant, how about teaching a fun and uplifting song called The Star-Spangled Banner? Although our National Anthem is one of the most recognizable melodies in America, I didn’t learn the tune until my fifth grade band class and actually memorized the words to the Canadian National Anthem before ours (thanks, Southpark: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut)!

Unlike the Pledge, our National Anthem does not require “affirmation of a belief and an attitude of mind (Barnette, 319 US 629, 633), and does not require children to “forego any contrary convictions…and become unwilling converts to the prescribed ceremony…[by simulating] assent by words without belief and by a gesture barren of meaning (Id).” Further, today the Pledge is as arcane as cursive and long division. When was the last time you either recited or heard the Pledge outside of a classroom?

There is nothing wrong with teaching the Pledge and its history at a young age, nor is there issue with reciting it in school as long as those reciting understand the meaning and have the opportunity to forbear without punishment. However, our increasingly diverse population combined with the Pledge’s minimal relevancy in today’s society may inspire teachers to find more riveting and creating ways to arouse patriotism in our youth.