Whether FFRF’s letter will help, I don’t know. They’re very good and have often made a difference. (I’ve been a member for 13 years.) In any case, you have my support and admiration. This was very brave of you and I know you will make a difference in the future if you haven’t already. (You may very will have, in others you’re inspiring as will as in the letter to your school district.)

I don’t think you’re conceding the battle by standing. You are merely living to fight another day. You gain nothing from the principal (illegal as it might be) standing in the way of your graduation. With the diploma, you can further your education, whether you go into the law or some other field that interests you, and go out into this world as an adult and fight for your rights and those of others. Others’ rights are important because it makes for the society we live in and inevitably protects our own. I’ve a feeling you already realize this.

I had a friend in junior high with a similar problem with our homeroom teacher who wouldn’t stand for the pledge because he was a Jehovah’s Witness. In the end, he didn’t have to and the principal told the teacher she couldn’t make him but she gave him a hard time for a couple of weeks. He hung in there and we kids backed him up (though if I had that to go back and do over again, I’d encourage the lot of us to sit down with him and do our own sit down strike; I didn’t know my rights back then, I only learned because of his actions that Jehovah’s Witnesses didn’t have to) because we liked him and didn’t like the teacher. We did do the pledge but there was a lot of foot shuffling, coughing, sneezing, etc. until the principal made her relent. Hmm, any chance some of your friends might join you in that sort of thing?

If you’re still uncomfortable with it, you can do what I did in high school and no one will ever notice. I went through a phase where I was really down on America because I was seeing all the things wrong with it and didn’t want to pledge. I took a page from my favorite singer, Paul Simon, and pledged allegiance to the wall. I’d look at the wall next to the flag.

If you do want to be more obvious, along with feet shuffling, etc., there were a couple of suggestions here. I love the one turning your back and the one about the salute, but either of those is really as blatant as sitting so you probably might as well sit down and since you already decided to respect your parents’ wishes (understandably!) probably not good options. Even foot shuffling and coughing and sneezing are obvious if you’re the only one doing it. In the case of my friend, he continued to sit while we did that.

Hang in there. Being underaged is a pain but an extremely temporary thing, roughly a quarter of your life, less as people live longer and longer. And keep your chin up! Hold your head high. Even while standing (and continue not to recite, they only said you had to stand) knowing that you made your stand, said your piece and it was heard — unlike everyone else who never said a thing in the first place. Just doing that much, was an act against it and you have made a difference.

To all the commenters who shared stories, likewise. Hang in there and take pride in having had the courage to do what you can. I’m among those of you who didn’t even know I could refuse (even after my friend I thought it was just a religious exclusion for a religion who didn’t believe in pledging to a country). But we survived and we’re sure making up for lost time now. That counts.

Wasilla High School’s homepage:

http://www.matsuk12.us/whs/site/default.asp

And right there on the front page is the e-mail address for Dwight Probasco, Principal

Dwight.Probasco@matsuk12.us

Hmmmm . . . .

That is not my high school. I do not attend Wasilla High, nor am I even in the boundary zones for it. At this time, I choose not to post the contact information for my school and my principal, simply because this is going through the school district as it is.

The FFRF has faxed a letter to the Mat-Su Borough School District’s Superintendent. There are about 4 or 5 high schools in the district, and I would rather anyways that no one contact him directly.

Again, thanks for all the wonderful support. The most influential of these comments are being printed in large type and taped to my wall.

Then the narrative changes from “rebellious teen refuses to honor America” into “secular school tries to indoctrinate young people into worshiping idols.”

It seems the state law confers to the students a legal right not to participate, “A school district shall inform all affected persons at the school of their right not to participate in the pledge of allegiance. The exercise of the right not to participate in the pledge of allegiance may not be used to evaluate a student or employee or for any other purpose.”

I think it’s fairly clear, then, that Daniel does not have to stand, and anyone who tries to make him stand or threatens to punish him in any way for his refusal to participate is in violation of that law. Within the confines of the school, I think the parents have a significant lack of control — for instance, they can’t insist that Daniel must skip his math classes every day. There have been some religious exceptions for certain classes, and, of course, exceptions for sex ed, but I don’t think the parents actually have the legal power to force their children to stand for the (corrupt) pledge.

However, his choice to obey his mother’s wish is probably good to maintain a healthy family atmosphere (and to prevent a lawsuit where she would undoubtedly endure a lot of harassment and time consumption). I’m hoping Daniel is making this choice not because he feels threatened, but because he has thought it through and decided that it’s the best course of action for him.

At minimum, the principal should be fired, and the teacher should be reprimanded.