Pledge Of Allegiance Research Paper

The students stared at the young Jewish girl with cold, accusatory eyes as the teacher lectured her about disrespect. Once the teacher finished her monologue about the pledge of allegiance, the girl sat quietly in her seat. Her face burned bright red from embarrassment and frustration at being misunderstood. The pledge of allegiance has become a part of everyday life for kids in elementary, middle and high school. From a young age kids are taught to recite this oath before class every morning. It has become so ingrained in American society that it is rarely questioned or comprehended, even by those who daily pledge their loyalty and respect to God and to the United States. Despite the fact that the pledge of allegiance is a way to express national pride, kids should not be forced to …show more content…
In the constitution, all United States’ citizens are granted freedom of speech. However, the enforcement of the pledge of allegiance in many schools has compromised that freedom. The freedom to speak freely goes hand in hand with the freedom to remain silent; you cannot have one without the other. Even though enforcing the Pledge violates the Constitution, court cases and debates are still held to argue over the political correctness of the pledge of allegiance. In the West Virginia State Board of Education versus Barnette court case, the court ruled that the enforcement of reciting the pledge in public schools “violated the First and Fourteenth Amendments”(The Pledge of Allegiance). The ruling also stated that “the Free Speech clause of the First Amendment prohibits public schools from forcing students to salute the American flag and say the Pledge of Allegiance”(The latest controversy). Numerous court cases have stated that requiring students to recite the Pledge of allegiance is unconstitutional, yet the “majority of justices declined to decide the issue of the Pledge’s constitutionality” during