What would you replace the "pledge of allegiance" with?
In the US most students recite "the pledge of allegiance" every morning before school, which is kind of crazy. If you were in charge, what if anything would you replace it with?
And do the same for the national anthem before every fucking sporting event. I’ll be damned if I’m standing and praying to a flag at every summer swim meet that is already going to take 4 hours to get done.
Don't even get me started. My high school didn't just do sports events, but they did the anthem or the pledge before just about every single event held in the building.
I never understood why Americans do that. For international events where the anthems of both teams are played, sure. But otherwise? Do you guys forget which country you are in?
One should strive to act with compassion and empathy towards all creatures in accordance with reason.
The struggle for justice is an ongoing and necessary pursuit that should prevail over laws and institutions.
One's body is inviolable, subject to one's own will alone.
The freedoms of others should be respected, including the freedom to offend. To willfully and unjustly encroach upon the another is to forgo your own.
Beliefs should conform to our best scientific understanding of the world. We should take care never to distort scientific facts to fit our beliefs.
People are fallible. If we make a mistake, we should do our best to rectify it and resolve any harm that may have been caused.
Every tenet is a guiding principle designed to inspire nobility in action and thought. The spirit of compassion , wisdom, and justice should always prevail over the written or spoken word.
I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.
Could even make an entire assembly about it. Every morning, spend five minutes dancing and showing allegiance to the vitamins and minerals in you, and oodles of the proteins too (oodle doodle)!
Back when I was an extremely earnest 14-year-old I wanted to replace it with Carl Sagan's Pale Blue Dot speech, but honestly that's probably too long and I don't think forcing 5-year-olds to recite something they won't even understand is a good way to instill anything worth instilling.
I really can't remember the last time I said it in school, would have been super early on, 1st or 2nd grade back in the 70s. Definitely not after that.
I pledge to be fair, stay curious and stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. To never forget we are a people dedicated to a just and free society for all. To be welcoming and inclusive of all peoples, rich or poor and the regardless if the color of their skin or their faith or gender or sexual orientation. Except Donald Trump. That guy is a jerk.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all menpersons are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it.
Something based on the scout oath. "a scout is trustworthy, loyal, honest..." Except based on what an American should be. "An American values the opinions of others, is a safe shot with a gun, does not live with someone without their consent, keeps their property secure, demands due process of the law, uses a lawyer, believes in the jury trail, does not apply cruel punishment, believes there are rights we don't know reserved to us, and believes in limited government" (you should find each article in the bill of rights above) Of course better wordsmiths than I should rewrite that, and we probably need a lot of debate.
Note that I never pledge allegiance. As a christian my allegiance is to God and so it would be a lie to pledge allegiance to anything else. Thus making me recite the common pledge is a violation of the first amendment. (this is much clearer if you read the 12 amendments as originally proposed - for better or worse what actually passed isn't as clear)
It's about having pride in your community. Nothing wrong with an anthem. But this one does not reflect the values or even represent most of the community it's meant to hype.
Not my type of music, but Kendrick Lamar seem to have hit the right note this summer.
Pledges reek of authoritarianism to me, so maybe replace it with a common saying like "Be excellent to each other because we have no more or less entitlement to this world than any other being and our individual perspective is at best a tiny viewport not to be confused with reality"
It is a law in my state that all students must stand and all teachers must recite. Most of the students recite too, but no one but teachers are forced to.
An elevator music rendition of the national anthem, if anything is needed at all (or maybe use this opportunity to remind students that individual towns/cities have flags, anthems, and pledges too).
Shower thought: What do deaf kids do for the pledge?