10/10/06: Standing With the Stars [and Stripes]

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."

These simple, but profound, words may be the one thing all Americans know by memory. The Pledge of Allegiance, written by Francis Bellamy, was first used as part of the quadricentennial celebration of Columbus Day at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1892. First published in “The Youth’s Companion,” the most popular magazine in its day, the Pledge became part of a national campaign to promote the raising of the American flag in every public school yard in America. The “Companion” argued by placing the nation’s flag over the public schools “America seemed to utter her trust that the distinctive principles of true Americanism will not perish so long as free, public education endures.”

Richard J. Ellis in his wonderful book, “to the flag: The Unlikely History of the Pledge of Allegiance” (University of Kansas Press, 2005) has argued that “five anxieties loom particularly in the creation, propagation, and amending of the Pledge . . .”
They are:

1. Anxiety about immigrants. Louis Hartz has argued, “No immigrants, no Pledge.” We worried about assimilation.

2. Anxiety about materialism. Throughout the late 19th century numerous jeremiads warned against the consequences of excessive individualism.

3. Anxiety over freedom. Can liberalism summon the self-sacrifice necessary to sustain a nation under threat?

4. Anxiety about radicals. Americanization is an important antidote against the un-American virus.

5. Anxiety about Communism. The inherent atheism present in communism played the direct role of inserting “under God” into the Pledge in 1954.

Understandably, our commitment to the Pledge waned until September 11, 2001. To date, the majority of public schools in America require the Pledge to be recited. Many over the years have protested. The Courts have tended to use a common sense approach when adjudicating such cases. Most particularly in West Virginia v. Barnette (1943), the Supreme Court allowed for conscientious objectors to refrain from reciting the Pledge as long as they did not disrupt it for others.

Ellis concludes his book by saying, “The Pledge ritual seems better suited to an insecure nation than a confident one, to a nation worried about change and fearful of the commitment of its young people and its newcomers. . .” CitizenU is weighing in on this issue for this very reason. We are concerned that, again, too many are taking for granted the freedoms and liberties that make us truly great. Our future is not guaranteed. Nor is our material prosperity. We are anxious. Lest we forget our nation’s first motto: Exitus in Dubio Est [which means: The outcome is in doubt]. Thankfully one nation committed to liberty and justice for all has stood the test of time and changed its motto to E Pluribus Unum.

Out of many, one.

It is time for a renewed debate. CitizenU asks all of its readers to comment to Richard Ellis’ basic question:

“Why does the United States, alone among Western democracies, insist on having school children across the country recite a pledge of allegiance?” Should we encourage this to continue? Should we all stand?

As for CitizenU and 2Regular Guys, you can catch us standing with the Stars [and Striptes].