School Persecution

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Hi. It's August 13th now, well, at least in the US it is, and school will be starting up soon. Most years I don't look forward to school only on the basis that I don't find it outrageously interesting (I like programming and the only thing related to programming we have is math classes). This year things are different. I don't only not want to go to school, but I'm now actually dreading it. Last year, in the past month or so, I had developed an opinion against standing for the Pledge of Allegiance. I had teachers yell at me, ask what's wrong with me, and I was even sent down the principle's office (he's a military veteran) where I got into a one sided argument where he wouldn't listen to a word I said only because I am a minor (constantly telling me that I'm being disrespectful the the military). I eventually took the easy way out (and I am now angry at myself for doing so) and went out into the hall, as my first period teacher asked, every morning during the pledge. I don't really like doing that. I have been an outcast my entire life and I don't need to be even more of one. This year with school starting soon, I know I'll either have to get into a very very big argument with the administration or shell out every dollar I have plus more to file a lawsuit. I'm not looking forward to being persecuted on my first day back. I tried telling myself to stay strong to my opinions, but that only helped a little. I guess now I'm looking to 2 of my roll models who have been in similar situations (Jesus and Richard Stallman). I really am not looking forward to this at all.

I understand how you feel. I feel the pledge of allegence to be pointless. At one time there was truth to what was being pledged, but the various local, state, and federal governments have broken the contract. The United States of America is no longer a republic. We are ruled by man instead of laws as originally intended. We are also no longer a nation "under god." We are also completely divided, and there is only freedom and justice for those who have enough money to fight for it in the court system. The school system seemd to be only interested in producing brainwasher, homogenius robots instead of educated individuals. Any deviation from the standard mold is persecuted.

Hello there

First off I wanted to let you know that I support your choice on not saying the pledge of allegiance, it takes a lot of courage to stand up for what you believe in and to stay true to your beliefs. There have been times in my life when I have unfortunately not done this so I praise you for standing up for your beliefs.

My best suggestion for you at this point is to write a letter to the school letting them before hand of your choice and that you have the right to follow through with this choice. If you want you can add your reasons for choosing not to recite the pledge but in my opinion it is none of their business. Some people do not say the pledge of allegiance because of their religious beliefs. Would it be right of the school to question them? I don't think so and I think you should let them know that.

I hope everything goes well for you! I can recall days when I dreaded school every day so I know how you feel.

My reasons are for the most part what cyberscan said. That and a few other things. I could try writing a letter to them, but from my experience with the people in this town, they would probably think I sent them an immature complaint and take no concern in it whatsoever (because of my age). I couldn't even get the principal to take me seriously when he was asking me why I wasn't standing. He was treating me like I was wrong and needed disciplined, and he was unwilling to understand me.

Do you have a web or video camera? If so, take your case to YouTube. Make it a compelling case and name names if you have to. You can make a video and give a COPY of it to your principal or you can put it on YouTube right away and make sure that people in the school know the URL. Keep the video clean, don't advocate violence or even suggest that you are willing to solve your propblem with violence. Also, dress conservatively and in what is considered a formal, tasteful manner. Look good and act good. However, give examples of why you disagree with the pledge and break it down point by point. Tell why and give examples of why America is no longer a republic. Tell why and give examples of why we are no longer a nation "under god" (refusing to accept right ruling or the existance of the Sovereign Creator), and most of all, tell why justice is only available to those who can pay or have other financial backing. Please, give your other reason why as well.

Regardless, there will be people who hate you anyway. These are the folks that I call "Blind Patriots." They think that all of their flag waving, pledges of allegiances, singing patriotic songs will make the United States a free nation. It won't. Just about every nation from North Korea on up have their form of pledges. Blind pledges does not a good country make.

Make the case as compelling as you can, and if push comes to shove, you can contact the various organizations for monetary backing to sue the school system if necessary. I would like to hear your reasons why you do not say the pledge. I love the United States and the original form of government that was set up by the founders. However, I dislike the governments that have taken over. I don't like saying the pledge because it makes the person who is taking the pledge a liar in a way because he or she has to say things that are not true. I would love for this country to return to a condition where I could say the pledge and not feel like a liar. I miss the Republic so badly.

I have a deep love for my country, and I am patriotic but I fail to see how a daily oath will make a man or woman a better person who is more proud of their nation.

I know that people who have strongly held beliefs sometimes choose to verbally express them each day. That is a personal choice, the deeply held views lead to the outward expression. I do not think it will ever work the other way around.

I sort of don't like how we look at country boundaries as separators. So many people act like they are better than everyone else in other countries. Why do we have to stand an oath for one country. What makes us better than everyone else. Shouldn't we be trying to better the whole world? That's just one of the many things that bothers me about it.

School starts tomorrow. I'll update you all about how it goes.

I'm not an American, but I admire you very much, OP.

This kind of reminds me of when I stopped believing in God, so I refused to sing hymns or say prayers in assembly. The teachers weren't too happy about that, but all they did was tell me off.

Stay true to your beliefs and don't cave under pressure from the establishment. Seriously, what's the worst they can do? Give you detention? I wish my detentions were for such a noble cause.

I should note that the original idea for the US flag pledge was to assimilate the hordes of immigrants that arrived during the Gilded Age (1870-1910). Most came from places where communism and anarchism were wildly popular-Russia, Poland, and what is now the Czech Republic were top originator countries-and the titans of American industry, who had ties to the British royal family and the old nobility of England, viewed these strange people as a potential revolutionary threat. The catch 22 was that the barons needed their labor-Americans were viewed as lazy and shiftless, unwilling to work, an idea that went back to the founders of the republic.

To resolve the problem, loyalty oaths and patriotic rituals including flag worship and worship of the founders were introduced, and a public school system set up for the purpose of indoctrination. Indeed, the model for American, and subsequently European, public education was an old German system meant to produce reliable, compliant soldiers and workers for the king. Public education had been pushed by socialists as a great equalizer, but the socialists got co-opted.

In the end, the strange people proved to be more willing to be American than initially thought. But the system had taken on a life of its own, and eventually shed the original justifications, which were forgotten. It was done for its own sake. What you face is a system meant to produce workers for the manual labor factories of the Gilded Age from "lazy" American farm kids and "radical" immigrants. The fact that the factories have all but vanished, and the few that remain require more than just manual labor (a typical factory floor in China has computers controlling everything, and knowing how to work the computers is essential; the Gilded Age obviously didn't have this problem), doesn't matter-the kids must be made to conform to a system that exists in isolation and does things for their own sake.

Additional reading can be found in Richard Shenkman's books "Legends, Lies, and Cherished Myths of American History" and the successor book, "I Love Paul Revere, Whether He Rode or Not". These books were published in the late 1980s, you will have to find them in a library, preferably the central library of the nearest big city. Do your research and embarrass the indoctrinators.

I'm retired US Military and take my Oath of enlistment very seriously and I'm glad that you likewise take your Oaths and Pledges seriously as well. However when the Canadian National anthem is played I stand out of respect. Standing out of respect while an Oath is taken isn't the same as taking the Oath or agreement with an Oath. Perhaps simply standing while others take their Pledge will defuse a volatile situation without compromising your principals.