One nation under Allah: Fury after school recites pledge in Arabic
Students at Pine Bush High School in Pine Bush, New York, knew right away there was something not quite right about the Pledge of Allegiance. Thats because the pledge was being recited in Arabic.
One nation under Allah, the student body president announced over the intercom system on Wednesday.
Reaction in the upstate New York high school was swift, and so was the backlash, The Times Herald-Record reports . Furious students tried to shout down the recitation in their classrooms. Other students sat down in protest.
School Superintendent Joan Carbone told the newspaper that the Arabic pledge divided the school in half noting that many complaints came from Jewish parents and those who had lost family members fighting the war on terror.
The outrage among students was so significant that the school issued an apology.
We sincerely apologize for having the Pledge of Allegiance recited this morning in the high school in a language other than English, the apology read. In our school district the Pledge of Allegiance will only be recited in English as recommended by the Commissioner of Education.
Well, thats somewhat reassuring.
However, state regulations do not mandate that the pledge be recited in a specific language. It recommends only specific wording.
108.5 Pledge to the flag.
(a) It is recommended that schools use the following pledge to the flag:
I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
(b) In giving the pledge to the flag, the procedure is to render the pledge by standing with the right hand over the heart. http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/03/20/one-nation-under-allah-fury-after-school-recites-pledge-in-arabic/
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The pledge is to state our loyalty to our exceptional country and to celebrate our common language, constitution, and culture. In God we Trust. Out of many, one.
Probably no coincidence it happened in Pine Bush. I don't known if the intent of the swastika drawing was anti-Semitic or not (maybe it was part of an art project?), but there have been quite a few incidents of swastikas being drawn, and harassment of Jewish students. (Maybe it was space aliens who did it...???)
It seems that the place has some problems and issues to work on.
It is not clear to me whether the pledge was recited in Arabic, or if the word "G-d" was merely substituted with "Allah".
It's just my personal view, but if the entire Pledge was recited in Arabic, or for that matter, any language, I don't think it would be objectionable.
If, on the other hand, the entire Pledge was done in English, with the one word "G-d" being substituted for "Allah", I would object on the basis that they would be actually seeking negative attention.
You seem to know a lot about it. What other languages did they use?