MORE ON COMPELLING TEXAS STUDENTS
TO RECITE THE PLEDGE

From the Houston Chronicle:

A new law requires students to recite the pledge to the Texas flag and observe a moment of silence. Supporters say it helps promote patriotism and build character, but some critics argue that the new state measure violates the First Amendment. They also note the requirement will stretch already thin budgets because a Texas flag must be present in every classroom.

Those who bring a note from home can be excused from the pledges. But Pam Parker, an attorney with the Association of Texas Professional Educators, is concerned about how school districts will implement the rules.

She said a U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Parker said, states that pupils have First Amendment rights, meaning they have a right not to participate even without a note from parents.

I would argue that the people behind this pledge law simply don't understand what it means to be an American. I love to say the pledge, when I want to. When I am coerced, as I now feel by this law, the pledge makes me feel less free, less American. If the words are not from the heart, they do not become simply meaningless: they become the antithesis of what they supposedly represent.

Children cannot learn the concept of "liberty and justice for all" if it is forced on them.

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