I posted this comment on FB Sept 2, 2020:
I went to elementary school in the early 50s. Every Monday, all the students would gather in the yard (or basement in poor weather) to say the Pledge and hear some words from the principal. The Pledge was never explained to me and I never bothered to ask why we talking to a flag, something that just didn’t (and doesn’t) make much sense to me.
I distinctly remember being told one day that the words “under God” had been added to the Pledge, but that we were free not to say them!
I have recited the Pledge many times since but I always leave a silence in there, a silence that reminds me that I’m an American who still has some freedom.
While the Pledge no doubt truly inspires many fellow citizens, I’m afraid that having been compelled to say it as a child involuntarily brings to mind one of the most frightening scenes on film, this scene from Cabaret.
So hats off to the Board for not requiring that the Pledge be recited for each meeting.