Should Students Recite the Pledge of Allegiance?

Written by Sarah Worthman

When students head back to the classroom in just a few weeks, they'll start each day with the Pledge of Allegiance—a tradition that goes back generations.

In Minnesota, as is the case with most states, classrooms in public schools are required to offer the pledge or the National Anthem daily, but students are not required to actually stand up and recite it. Most do, of course, but some students object to the phrase "Under God" and refuse to take part in the daily routine.

The issue has surfaced nationally. Earlier this year, a state lawmaker in Arizona introduced a bill to require students to recite the pledge. Other states, including Oregon and Nebraska, have had discussions on whether to require the pledge to be recited in schools.
We asked this question on our Facebook page, and here are some of the answers we received:

• Scott Rickhoff: Yes.
• Sharon Bechler Sorenson: Absolutely, yes!
• Vince Trovato: Of course not... not with the newest change. Take out the "under god" part and we can turn it back into a daily routine. This isn't a politically correct "don't say merry Christmas, cause it will offend people" crap. This is actually a big deal to me and many others i'm sure. Saying that America is a nation under god is kind of ridiculous and actually offensive to force children to say about our country that is home to countless religious beliefs or lack thereof. I don't believe religion should play any part of any school unless it is a world religion class.
• James Rea: No, and not just because of "under god." The pledge is recited throughout most of K-12, with many of those grades not having a full understanding of what they're pledging. The pledge of allegiance is a pledge one should take when they understand what it means to pledge oneself to their country. In my personal experience, I would have never recited the pledge if I had known about issues within the republic that I know of now.
• Susan Mertha: Yes, with the important phrase "under God" included!
• Vince Trovato: Susan... That phrase isn't important! it's not even a correct statement. might as well ad "and we know santa is watching, even when we are sleeping."