At the start of every school day, students in the United states pledge their allegiance to their country. But is it only their country their pledging allegiance to? It is clear that the government is blatantly trying to coerce children into believing in god, therefore I believe they should remove the phrase “under god” from the pledge.
Douglas Laycock, Associated Dean for research at the University of Virginia law school, states “They want to coerce other kids to say what it means and what they believe to be true”. If the children say it every day for their whole school life, surely something will stick. Scientist have proven that the more you say something the more you believe it. This evidence strongly suggest that the only reason they have kept “under god” in the pledge is for coercion. If it wasn’t so important and had no religious meaning, then surely they would not be hesitant? For this is why I believe that the government should keep church and state divided and not drag children into this.
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The courts should denounce any religious meaning to “under god” in the pledge. The fact that they haven’t yet is saying something. The United States is not a Christian country, despite what others may say. To pretend that the words “under god” is just secular is false and it undervalues religion. Federal and state statutes saying that we are a nation “under god” violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution as a government endorsement of religion. Despite the government saying that this is just looking to a higher power, evidence strongly shows that this is not the
Before examining both sides of the issue, the phrase, “under God” should not be in the Pledge of Allegiance. Including the term, “under God”, violates the idea of separation of church and state, which is deeply rooted in the U.S Constitution. Now after analyzing both sides of the debate, I still support removing the phrase, “under God”, but the reasons for doing so has changed. For example, despite opposing viewpoints claiming that the U.S federal government and documents have many allusions to religion and God, Founding Father Thomas Jefferson firmly believed that religion should not be involved with politics (ProCon). The term “under God” originally did not exist in the Pledge of Allegiance; it was only in 1954 when President Dwight Eisenhower
The driving force was the Catholic fraternal society the Knights of Columbus. In the early '50s the Knights themselves adopted the God-infused pledge for use in their own meetings, and members showered Congress with calls for the United States to do the same. In April 1953, Rep. Louis Rabaut, D-Mich., formally proposed the alteration of the pledge in a bill he introduced to Congress. The words "Under God" were inserted in the pledge for the express purpose of endorsing religion; the U.S. Supreme Court itself ruled in 1971 that this was unconstitutional. Also according to the Supreme Court's own rulings, it doesn't matter that students are allowed to refrain from saying the pledge; a 2000 high court decision said that voluntary, student-led prayers at school football games are unconstitutionally "coercive," because they force students into an unacceptable position of either proclaiming religious beliefs they don't share or publicly protesting. (http://www2law.cornell.edu.)
“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 of Allegiance was originally written in 1892, but the version we all know and recite was rewritten in the year of 1954 when President Eisenhower convinced Congress to add in “under God” during times of communist threat. “I pledge allegiance,” when we are taught in kindergarten to say this with our hands over our heart, we are being coerced into pledging allegiance without even truly knowing what it is. We are promising to be loyal and devoted to the following things that are to be said. “To the flag of the United States of America,” the flag represents the land we are on which is the United States.
It has been ruled that the Pledge of Allegiance being mandatory at schools is unconstitutional. So, the students of varied religions are free to follow their beliefs and if students of different nationalities feel that saying the pledge is dishonoring their own country, they are also free to choose not to say the pledge.
I am against the words under god in our pledge. God has been a part of our history for quite a while, but he is in no way a part of our government. For those that do not know our Pledge was written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, and although he may have been a Baptist minister, he made no hint towards god, or any higher power in the early pledge. That truly says something to the world. It portrays a sense of pride in America that did not come off as fascist, but of course pride eventually does evolve into fascism. In the 1950s the words under god were added to the Pledge of Allegiance because we felt that godless communists were going to ruin our American way of life. It was like a phobia had overcome America, and words would save us. It is one
One of the most controversial issues, if “Under God” should remain in the pledge, and if children should be required to say it, went to court a few weeks ago. The argument was brought to court by Michael Newdow, the father to the girl on whose behalf the lawsuit was brought forward. Newdow argued in court and on many different public speaking occasions that knowing his child is being led to say “One nation under God” on a daily basis makes him feel “Disenfranchised”. (Hamilton, Marci A. CNN Special). He points out that “The Pledge, which has “liberty for all” is being used to inculcate his daughter in a religious worldview he cannot accept”. (Hamilton, Marci A. CNN Special). This means
On March 24, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Elle Grove Unified School District vs. Newdow over the decision that the words, “Under God”, in the Pledge of Allegiance. Michael Newdow, being an atheist, did not want his daughter to learn of a “false” or “fake” God. He did everything in his power to try and get the phrase removed from the pledge and from society all together. Newdow states, “And every morning my child is asked to stand up, face that flag, put her hand over her heart and say that her father is wrong”. Although the 9th Circuit Court originally agreed with Mr.Newdow’s contention, the court stayed the ruling after a national uproar ensued. People did not want someone who has a biased thought process to decide whether or not a simple phrase in the pledge, should be removed. Newdow states, “For 62 years, this pledge did serve the purpose of unification, and it did do it perfectly”. Newdow does not want anything to do with any God in this world just because he has a biased thought
According to Dictionary.com “The right to choose a religion (or no religion) without interference by the government, freedom of religion is guaranteed by the First Amendment to the Constitution.” This means the government cannot force a person to believe in a certain religion; however the government is allowed to have a religion. The Pledge of Allegiance is honoring America and shows the core values of the nation. The words ‘under God’ in the Pledge of Allegiance while it may be endorsing Christianity, it is not violating the First Amendment.
“The words "under God" were added to the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954 to show the world the stark contrast between the United States of America and the Communist regime.” The words show the relationship between our country and our social system. This also shows that more than half of the country approved adding in the words “under god.” “The men who created our government were men of strong faith.” The men who created the government understood the rights that we inherit from God. Although our freedom does not come from government but, being a Christian in the government must of helped America get its freedom. In 1954, 80% of the country supported having “Under God” in the pledge, so it should
All throughout the United States, people recite the pledge of allegiance but what they do not see is that the nation was not exactly built on religion itself. American Evangelicals hold a strong belief that the United States was formed through traditional Christian ideals and look to the invocation of God's words in pieces of government. After all, with words like "God and "our creator," one may assume that traditional Christian values were upheld in the creation of the United States political system. However, because of the Enlightenment movement, roughly most of the founding fathers were not practicing Christians. The founding fathers often dabbled in skepticism of theocratic dogma and stood for religious toleration. America's founding fathers were influenced by a kind of
Those who do not support the standing and reciting “Pledge of Allegiance” mostly have conflict with the words, “under God.” This is understandable for those who do not identify as Christians to say those two words. In 1954, the phrase “under God” was added to show resistance to the Communist Movement in America. Keeping with tradition and the support of capitalism, “under God” is a valid part of the Pledge therefore each
“I pledge allegiance to my flag and for the republic for which it stands: one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” This was the original pledge, it should also be the current pledge. When President Eisenhower was in office in 1954, he made it law that “under God” was to be put in the pledge. It was not until Judge Alfred T. Goodwin argued that those two words violated one of the most important parts of the first amendment to many American citizens. Many people come to America to seek religious freedom. It is evident that “Under God” should be taken out of the pledge by showing that it goes against the first amendment, it has had an affect on our history, and it can confuse young kids in school.
We have the Bill of Rights, what we need is a bill of responsibilities. ~ Bill Maher. Everyone in the world has responsibilities, and as Americans we have our responsibilities as well. America is a land of freedom, by following our responsibilities we can keep the nation as great as it is. If we do not, however we will become far less free than we are now. We just take advantage of the rights we are given and we definitely do not stop to think about how they got there, and how many people had to die to give them to us.
The argument of the words ?under god? remaining in the pledge is an ongoing fight?one with many court cases, all of which have ruled the same. The ruling is that under god is still appropriate and need not be removed from the pledge. The argument is clear, saying that there are many people who are not ?under God? and do not believe in ?Him.? Some people believe this statement shows that our nation?s religious beliefs are all the same, when in fact they are not. In a recent case in California, a few chief justices spoke on their opinion about the pledge. Justice Rehnquist says ?Reciting the pledge, or listening to others recite it, is a patriotic exercise, not a religious one? Participants promise fidelity to our flag and our nation, not to any particular God, Faith or Church.? (Hendrie, 2004, paragraph 25). Judge O?Connor says that ?nearly any government action could be overturned as a violation of the establishment clause if a ?heckler?s veto? sufficed to show that its message was one of endorsement.? (Hendrie, 2004, paragraph 27).
Four major types of coffee maker exist in the world today. These types of coffee maker are listed as follows: the stove top, the vacuum, the drip and the French press. Making coffee with these different types of coffee makers usually depends on a whole lot of different things, which primarily ‘boil’ down to the amount of coffee you wish to make and the time you have available to make it. If you have different types of coffee tastes these different types of coffee makers will ensure you are able to make your particularly favorite brew of coffee in the comfort of your home.