Case Study: Respond to the following paragraph. You can either agree or disagree with it. response, should be 150 words.
In reading the article "Under God" it make many points that I agree with that I never even thought of in the first place. Growing up in the public school system it was a routine to learn, remember and recite the pledge of allegiance every single morning. As a young child we do not realize that reciting the pledge may be going against our personal beliefs. I sure didn't think anything of it. But then the article starts to mention children who are more aware of their religious beliefs and are uncomfortable reciting the pledge. I myself do not remember ever seeing anyone refusing to recite the pledge. Most children would just recite it anyways in fear of being left out or made fun of by the other children. They may also fear resentment and retaliation.
Therefor I do agree the pledge should not be recited in the public school system. The pledge should not be recited because it is wrong to force the phrase "under god" upon anyone. I am saying this because, we want to ensure equality among every child attending public school no matter what god or how many gods they believe in. This could be a causing factor for bullying as well if some children pick on others for refusing to say the pledge. All religions in school should be respected and awareness of other religions should be on the rise. Also what if reciting the pledge does alter a child's way of thinking. As stated in the article "impressionable children are being asked to join in a ritual observance that is an affirmation of God as well as of county". The word that sticks out the most is "impressionable". With young children being considered as impressionable this is basically saying they are trying to mold young children way of thinking and to recite and believe in the pledge. This is exactly why reciting the pledge in school is wrong. It can possibly make children rethink their own beliefs and go along with reciting the pledge to "fit in".
I agree with the article that the issue should be pushed more. I was surprised when reading that an atheist brought this to light. Regardless as mentioned in the article that people may view the pledge as just a part of history rather than having a devotional message, it still is offensive to other religions. I do feel like more religious leaders should get involved in this issue to protect their religion, their conscience and to protect their children. America would not be what it is today without all the diversity in people and religion.