Pledge Of Allegiance In Public Schools Doesn't Discriminate Against Atheists, Court Says

[moonbladem]

The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruled Friday that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools does not discriminate against atheists, despite containing the words "under God."

According to the AP, the court ruled in Doe v. Acton-Boxborough Regional School District that the phrase "under God" reflects a patriotic practice and is

Comments

[layweed]

So wait, does reciting the pledge constitute a "patriotic practice" or "under God" constitute a "patriotic practice"? Because fuck me if it's the second one.

And I'm pretty sure no one told me when I was 7 years old that reciting the Pledge was voluntary. Granted that was 25 years ago but I'm pretty damned sure it wasn't then and it probably isn't now, no matter what a court says.

[astridmyrna]

I had a French teacher in HS get pissy at me because I would stand and remain silent during the pledge, especially since he wanted us to recite it in French. I'd get around it by just mouthing it when he was too far away to hear me, because everyone else was half-mumbling, half-reciting it so loudly you couldn't tell who was talking.

[emofordino]

this is exactly what i was thinking! i don't know if things have changed since i've been in school (i graduated in 2006), but when i was in elementary, junior high, AND high school, we were all forced to stand up and recite the pledge every morning, and if we didn't, we'd get in trouble. that's hardly voluntary.

[firefox1490]

ngl I never said it in school. I would just stand there and wait till it was done and sit again. We didn't say it that often to be fair but when we did I just didn't do it.

[roseofjuly]

It's definitely voluntary. I grew up as a Jehovah's Witness, and JWs won at least two court cases in the 1950s and 1960s because they're not supposed to say the Pledge. The court ruled that school children can't be compelled to say it. I never said the Pledge in all my years in school.