Weston Students Take Stand On Lawsuit Over Pledge Of Allegiance

WESTON, Conn. - When asked about a family that is suing their school district over the “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance, Weston students said that saying the words is a matter of personal choice.

Students from Weston High School say the lawsuit against the "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance is a personal choice and not something that needs to be a lawsuit.
Photo Credit: *Alissa Smith*

by Alissa Smith

04/23/2014 3:30 p.m.

“I think it’s a really personal thing,” said 16-year-old Becca Marks. But, she added, “It’s part of our history.” However, saying “under God” is really a personal choice for someone to make while saying the Pledge of Allegiance, Marks said.

“No one should be made to say it,” she added.

Jack Seigenthaler, 16, said he agreed with Marks. Saying the Pledge of Allegiance at all should be a personal choice and not mandated, he said.

“I have a friend who doesn’t stand up to say the pledge, and I have friends who don’t say the ‘under God’,” Seigenthaler said.

But for Jackson Marvin, 16, saying the Pledge of Allegiance is a way of remembering those who have gone before and served the nation.

A family in the New Jersey Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District and its superintendent to remove the “under God” portion of the Pledge of Allegiance because it discriminates against atheists, which violates New Jersey’s constitution.

The addition of “under God” was made in the early 1950s and was not a part of the original wording of the Pledge of Allegiance.

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