The Iowa Republican Caucuses all began with the attendees giving the Pledge of Allegiance. Well, why? And what really is this Pledge of Allegiance anyway?
History of the pledge
The pledge was originally written by Francis Bellamy (1855-1931), and published on September 8, 1892 in the The Youth's Companion, a widely red-magazine, as part of a suggested programme for a "National School Celebration of Columbus Day. Something of a lefty, Bellamy intended the Pledge to be recited with a special salute, but more on that later.
Children giving pledge of Allegiance, May 1942,
using Bellamy salute employed 1892-1942.
Changing wording of the pledge
Bellamy's intended wording for the original pledge was:
I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation indivisible, with liberty, equality and fraternity for all.
But, in the Gilded Age in the land of Jim Crow, Bellamy knew that "equality for all" wasn't going to catch on, so the initial pledge became:
I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation indivisible, with liberty, and justice for all.
In the early 1920s, rising nativism drove a demand that the flag to which allegiance was pledged be made more specific, hence the words were changed to
"the flag of the United States of America." In 1954, to hold off the Red Tide of Godless Communism, the words "under God" were added.
Children preparing to give the Bellamy salute as part
of the Pledge of Allegiance prior to December 1942.
The salute.
Bellamy also designed a special salute to go with the pledge, which became known as the
Bellamy Salute, and this was intended to be militaristic. From Belamy's original 1892 instructions :
At a signal from the Principal the pupils, in ordered ranks, hands to the side, face the Flag. Another signal is given; every pupil gives the flag the military salute -- right hand lifted, palm downward, to a line with the forehead and close to it. Standing thus, all repeat together, slowly, “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands; one Nation indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.” At the words, “to my Flag,” the right hand is extended gracefully, palm upward, toward the Flag, and remains in this gesture till the end of the affirmation; whereupon all hands immediately drop to the side.
By December 1942, with the U.S. deeply engaged in war against Nazi Germany, it was getting a little embarrassing to be using the Bellamy salute, and so it was replaced with the current hand over heart gesture.
Mandatory government oath
The giving of the Pledge of Allegiance was once something that government could impose with the full force of law. The Supreme Court, in a remarkable shift of opinions ruled in 1940, in Minersville School District v. Gobitis that states could compel recitation of the pledge, and in 1943, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, reversed itself and ruled that states could not. Possibly the best statement was provided by Justices Hugo Black and William O. Douglas, concurring in the majority decision in Barnette:
Words uttered under coercion are proof of loyalty to nothing but self-interest. Love of country must spring from willing hearts and free minds, inspired by a fair administration of wise laws enacted by the people's elected representatives within the bounds of express constitutional prohibitions. These laws must, to be consistent with the First Amendment, permit the widest toleration of conflicting viewpoints consistent with a society of free men.
Neither our domestic tranquillity in peace nor our martial effort in war depend on compelling little children to participate in a ceremony which ends in nothing for them but a fear of spiritual condemnation. If, as we think, their fears are groundless, time and reason are the proper antidotes for their errors. The ceremonial, when enforced against conscientious objectors, more likely to defeat than to serve its high purpose, is a handy implement for disguised religious persecution. As such, it is inconsistent with our Constitution's plan and purpose.
It's worth noting that the salute employed in the Barnette case was the Bellamy salute, and while the court didn't base its decision on it, the court did include a description of the salute in its opinion, showing that the court was not just focused on the words but also on the required gesture as well.
De facto tool for social coercion.
So, while the de jure coercive power of the state cannot compel anyone to say the pledge of allegiance, the de facto coercive power of the mob still remains.
Tippicanoe County (Indiana) Islamic Center case.
On 1/3/12, commissioners of Tippicanoe County, Indiana, (major city: Lafayette) approved a rezoning request to allow construction of an Islamic center on land previously zoned agricultural. (Source: jconline.com.). From the story on jconline.com (names of individuals have been replaced by me with abbreviations):
Two residents who spoke out Tuesday raised questions not about the proposed usage but with Islam and its adherents' motives. One was West Lafayette resident MPH, who told commissioners that the project's approval by the Tippecanoe County Area Plan Commission "frightened me."
"They voted to rezone property for the Islamic Society to build a community center, an elementary school and a mosque," MPH said. "Shouldn't those 13 government members of the commission consider the implications of putting American citizens in harm's way?"
* * *
JD, who attended the meeting with MPH, questioned the Islamic Society's motives.
"I'm an American citizen," JD said. "I've pledged allegiance to the flag of the United States, and I noticed the gentlemen behind me who are from the Islamic Society did not pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. Gentlemen, this is what concerns me the most."
To obtain as simple a request as a rezoning of property, the proponents of the Islamic center were forced to defend their patriotism. Again, from jconline.com:
Representatives of the Islamic Society firmly rejected JD and MPH's assertions, saying they are as much a part of the Greater Lafayette community as anyone else.
"I have been an American citizen for 30 years," said IK, president of the group and a local physician. "My kids were born here. I just want to assure the community ... that we respect the community, and me and my family and kids are part of this community. We live with you."
A discussion between S. and JD after the meeting turned tense when JD restated her position.
"Bottom line, my concern about your position is why not pledge allegiance to the flag?" JD said.
"I did," S. replied. "I went to elementary school every day and pledged allegiance. It's my own personal religion, and it's not your job to question it."
Lilburn, Georgia Islamic Center case.
And there is an element of subtle (or not so subtle) coercion here also. On August 26, 2011 the U.S. Dept. of Justice was forced to sue the city of Lilburn, Georgia under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 on the grounds that the city had twice denied rezoning permits for a proposed Islamic center:
The government’s lawsuit alleges that the city’s denials of the rezoning applications were based on the religious bias of city officials and to appease members of the public who opposed the construction of a mosque because of religious bias. The complaint further alleges that the city treated the Islamic Center differently than it treated non-Muslim religious groups that regularly have been granted similar rezoning requests.
. The case was settled shortly after filing. However, prior to the filing of the action, the persons seeking to build the Islamic center were compelled (if that is not too strong a word) to prove their patriotism by recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance: From
muslimmedianetwork.com:
ATLANTA,GA–Members of metro Atlanta’s Muslim community spent part of the Fourth of July holiday spreading a message of peace and unity, WSBTC reported.
Organizers of a small gathering at the Bethak Banquet Hall in Duluth said they want to move beyond recent controversy surrounding the proposals to expand and build mosques in Lilburn and Alpharetta.
But Monday’s event wasn’t about politics, but patriotism.
“I’m here to say the Pledge of Allegiance,” said Gwinnett teen Suha Rashied. She was among a group of children who lead the gathering with a salute to the American flag.
The families who gathered Monday said the show of patriotism was more important than any fireworks.
“We wanted to remind everybody, yes, we are your fellow Americans and we are sending a message of peace and harmony,” said organizer Shamina Voora.
I cannot imagine that any Christian group would have to say the Pledge of Allegiance to assure their loyalty to this country prior to obtaining a zoning change to build a church.
Excuse for bullying? -- the Tampa Bay school case
Here is an ugly little incident from August 2009 as reported in tampabay.com To summarize, a JROTC high school student claimed that she confronted a Muslim student because the Muslim student (who was wearing a head scarf) did not stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. Quite aside from the fact that it was perfectly within the rights of anyone not to stand for or recite the pledge, the JROTC student had lied, the Muslim student had in fact stood up during the Pledge of Allegiance. The real reason for this incident, which the school authorities properly regarded as an act of bullying, was, according to tampabay.com, the JROTC student:
"... began to rant that she was enlisting and was going to Iraq and that basically because the girl looks Middle Eastern, that makes her an enemy because all Iraqis are Middle Eastern," according to the referral signed by assistant principal Stephen Crognale.
When the school suspended the JROTC student for 3 days, the local wingnuts began calling the school and "abusing" the school staff. The JROTC student is interviewed
Christian Broadcast Network video. I don't want to criticize this child, as one must have a certain freedom to err at age 16. I do criticize the adults in the situation who seem to be applauding the errors of the child, and using the child as evidence of the Christianist fantasy of themselves as victims of an oppressive Godless government. Tampabay.com also gives some details of the effect on the Muslim student:
Ahmed Bedier, president of the Human Rights Council and a personal friend of the family was relaying a request by the Times for comment this afternoon. But the family is reluctant to go on record with the media, he said.
On Saturday, the Muslim girl's father found his daughter reading online news stories about the incident and the comments from readers, Bedier said.
"She was crying," Bedier said. "She said, 'I didn't do anything wrong. Why are these people saying all these horrible things?'"
"To her, somebody made a mean comment and she just kept walking," Bedier said. She never expected any of this to happen."
The story is troublesome because it has stoked negative feelings toward Muslims among some Americans, Bedier said.
As an establishment of religion?
While I don't want to get too much into this aspect of the pledge, as this diary is long enough as it is, the words "under God" have been thought by some to represent the establishment of a civic religion of some sort. The Ninth Circuit in a long and belabored opinion (.PDF) published in 2010 found this not to be so by 2 to 1 vote on a three judge panel. This was of course wrong, and the dissenting judge, Reinhardt, called them on it.
Conclusion and alternatives.
While there may be some value in developing civic virtue among young people by recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, that function could be performed just as well by many other means. I suggest consideration of the Four Freedoms speech as a basis. But the Pledge of Allegiance now seems to have become a sort of cheesy loyalty test for bigots, and needs to be replaced.