At my school, it is custom to start out the morning with the pledge of alleigance before class starts every morning. Basically, after the bell rings, an announcer gets on the speaker, says the pledge, and then it's over. All four years when experiencing this, I've seen the same results: the kids around me stand up lazily, stare at the flag, don't say a word, and then sit back down. Maybe a few every here and there will put their hand on their heart or mutter a bit of it, but mostly, it's just awkward standing out of fear of a lecture from the teacher or being that one man out who doesn't stand, I don't know which.
I used to be that kid who'd put their hand on their heart and speak the words to the best of my ability. But a few months ago, I had an epiphany. This pledge doesn't raise nationalism or pride, it waters it down. By having students say the pledge on a daily basis, the words of the pledge become repetetive, lose their meaning. Not only that, but the pledge almost forces us to be proud. And when you force someone to feel a certain way, it takes away the choice. And when you take away choice, people lose enthusiasm for the task at hand. Just ask any 10 year old whos mom made them join band when they didn't want to.
So, I decided to stop standing with the crowd. Don't get me wrong, I'm very proud to be an American. Just the fact I'm American means I can make this blog post without having to worry about FBI agents swarming into my house and throwing me into some secret prison in Antartica. That's a gift I respect. But the pledge takes away the meaning of America. It takes away the meaning of being proud.
What bugs me is the implication that goes behind not saying the pledge. "What? Are you not proud to be an American? You're being silly." Our country isn't perfect. We have screwed up economics, corruption in government, still face discrimination, and continue to destroy the land we come from. We have some work to do. I acknowledge the progress we've made, fighting for freedom, gaining women's rights, losing school segregation, growing acknoledgement of global warming, and continuing to try to raise standards of living for everyone. But we have work to do. And that's fine. But forcing nationalism doesn't do anything. I love my country. I really do. But if even our pledge still says we're "under God" when we're in country that shold be promoting diversity amoung religions, there are still things that need to be changed.
As always, now I open the question to you. Do you think saying the pledge is smart or silly? What is your opinion on our country's nationalism (which, by the way seems to be taking a satirical turn, with new pictures such as this becoming norm on the internet)? What do you think of good ol' 'murica, whether you are from this country or not? Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments below.
I agree with you.
ReplyDeleteThe pledge of allegiance was not even part of something that was part of our country since the beginning. It was used in the 50s during the red scare. That should be sending up red flags already (Ha???). It is based off of paranoia. It should be reserved only for the times when we actually need it, or it does lose meaning.
I definitely feel like I've become a robot. I can honestly say that I've become one of those slugs over the years. And that really scares me. The norm has changed since the pledge was introduced, yet the pledge hasn't rapidly changed with the norm. I don't think it should be required to say the pledge - in fact I think it's nobler of you to actually think about what you're told to repeat every day and decide against it rather than becoming a zombie (y'know like me :D) and say the pledge just because of conformity.
ReplyDeletePS. Band beats orchestra every day - no ten year old is forced into band. It's something they chose because they feel a deep connection to it in their blood. Peace out.