Our son told us he doesn’t recite the pledge of allegiance in class (started last year in first grade). Asked why and he said it’s because of how we talk about the country not taking care of its people. Never prompted, but he has his convictions already.
I stopped shortly after 9/11 when it felt like everyone around me got replaced by Podpeople. I wanted to be left alone, but when people started throwing garbage at me, I was the one called to the office and… encouraged to start again. I did not restart that year, but I didn’t gain anything and just recited the BS the following year. God, I regret ever going and finishing at that shithole.
Shame they don’t still do the original salute as well.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellamy_salute
Would have really driven home the kind of thinking that comes up with such things.
Holy shit. That was definitely not something they admitted to doing. Amusing how the history books leave out these fun facts.
i love that it was replaced in 1942. it’s like they waited to see whether it was even necessary to change or maybe it would work out anyway.
Yep, they might as well go all the way and also wear armbands.
I stopped doing the pledge when I realized I don’t want to pledge my allegiance to a broken system. I’d happily start doing it again once I see actual beneficial change to our country, not more politics to fight/break apart over.
I’d happily start doing it again…
Don’t. It’s super weird.
Lol id kill someone back then sooner than do that
Pledge to corporate same now. i don’t care about consequences. you can shove your funny pledges up your arses. I am here only for money
It’s not my fault I’m burdened with being 100% objectively correct at all times. 😔
we suffer from success
I had a very new teacher in I think 6th grade. She had us do the pledge the first day of school, after almost forgetting, and then never again. After a couple days I was like “… Wait. Shit. It is weird we were doing that every day”. It had just seemed normal.
Thanks to that teacher for probably accidentally getting me to think about it.
I wonder if that teacher still teaches.
I hated standing for the whole thing so I sat down. This was, apparently, defiance, so my mother was called.
A mistake for them. Mother knew the law, and tore into them for trying to force me.
I compromised by placing my hands over my heart as I sat at my desk, saying nothing.
Mother knew I just didn’t want to stand and was annoyed at that but more annoyed at them trying to force me lmao
I’m a teacher and not only do I not make my kids do it (it’s illegal to make a student say the pledge if you didn’t know), I don’t do it myself because I think it’s fucking weird and inappropriate. My only rule is to remain quiet if you’re not saying the pledge, out of respect to people who do want to observe it.
Telling your normal students to respect their nationalist loser peers is a bad move. You should be subtly encouraging your students to bully anyone who says the pledge of allegiance
Disrespecting of anyone is shitty.
Celebrate individuality. Bullying is for terribly short sighted sorts that could use some education.
I don’t respect people who say it. Patriotism is disrespectful to everyone else in the world.
I feel vindicated
This goes through high school now? Granted it’s been quite a few years, but as a child of the ultra 'murka fuck yeah Reagan years, I can’t remember having to say the pledge after elementary school.
Raised my daughter in Texas, and they expected the pledge AND the Texas State pledge. She considered that absurd at a very young age and I think she just stayed silent. But even then, I don’t recall her mentioning it after elementary school.
It did 20+ years ago when I was in high school. I didn’t stand for it, I remember getting a lot of shit for it, but I didn’t like those kids anyway.
Lol definitely me in middle school and onward. Never got in trouble for it though which was neat after reading through this thread.
I didn’t either and the only shit I caught for it was from other students. Related- the best teacher I ever had before college was from my American Government and Politics class. She kept printouts of state law in her filing cabinet of the section that says you can’t force kids to say the pledge. She was happy to give them out to anyone whose teacher tried to force them.
In my defense I learned not to do it from internet Europeans.
One time in high school we had an Army recruiter come in to speak to our class. After his presentation he said “any questions?” Rob raised his hand and said “I have a question: does napalm still stick to kids?” I recently talked to him (this was 40 years ago) and he didn’t remember doing this, but he’s proud of his younger self - as am I.
I’m curious about the response
Me too tbh.
Literally “any other questions?”
Army recruiter: “I’m a real man! I am a killing machine. I don’t do feelings like fear or love or cold. I fear no one and no thing… except questions”
Pledge allegiance to the flag? What is this, North Korea?
What’s that pledge?
You pledge allegiance to the flag, as a stand in for a non democratic republic, call yourself the only nation protected by god, and then make up some stuff about unity and non legal justice.
