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Essay / Persuasive Essay on the Pledge of Allegiance - 840
When the morning announcements come and say, "Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance," people usually don't think about it , but stand up and recite a few lines. to something they learned in kindergarten. However, some people may think it is wrong to make the pledge based on a religion they practice. Requiring students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance violates the First Amendment because they are protected by the Free Speech Clause. This is seen through the Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow case, the West Virginia Board of Education v. Barnette case, and the case before the Massachusetts Supreme Court. In the following cases, there is a question of whether or not it is right to force students to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance while they are at school. In Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow, Michael Newdow is suing to have his daughter required to take the Pledge of Allegiance while in school. The Newdow family is an atheist family who disagrees with the phrase "under God" stated in the Pledge of Allegiance. Newdow disapproved of forcing her daughters to say the pledge in class. He also states that this is a violation of the Establishment Clause in which he does not want the school to be able to control his daughter's religion or beliefs. When this case came to court, a debate arose over whether or not the statement "under God" had religious significance. A judge, Mr Justice O'Connor, said: "It remains to be seen whether the phrase 'under God' is either worship or prayer." Furthermore, O'Connor states that "the term does not refer specifically to any religion." When taking the Pledge of Allegiance, students do so not because of religious views but to pledge allegiance to their country. The ...... middle of paper ...... his problem. A poll by NBCnews.com indicates that 97 percent of votes favor removing the phrase “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance. It would not be a good decision to change the Pledge of Allegiance. Although forcing students to say the pledge even if they don't want to violates the Constitution, changing the words doesn't solve the problem. People say the Pledge of Allegiance has been around since 1954 and removing the words “under God” will have no positive effect. In conclusion, the Pledge of Allegiance violates the First Amendment of the Constitution. Forcing students to recite the Pledge at school goes against their freedom of expression. Additionally, students of certain religions who feel it is not right to say the pledge based on the words it contains have freedom of religion and should not be forced to say it..