Posted on 10/16/2001 9:00:12 AM PDT by YOMO
Hit this poll for those up in Madison. So far 88% 1178 votes for recall, 12% 158 votes against. Hopefully sometime today they should air the findings. Anyone in Madison please report the manner the TV gives results.
Freeped and bumped.
Ray Allen: Pledge binds us together
In his recent editorial column, Ed Garvey took issue with comments I made on Channel 3's "For the Record" program and inferred that I somehow conveniently missed the board meeting in which the first vote on the Pledge of Allegiance was taken.
Let me set the record straight. I was not at the first meeting because of a death in my family. I was attending the funeral in Kentucky at the time of the now much-talked-about vote.
At the time I left town there was no meeting scheduled. The board president was aware that Mr. Lopez and I would both be unable to attend. I am angered and saddened that the board felt the need to address this issue with less than a full staff of its members. There was no need so pressing that this issue could not have waited another few days, especially since it was known that the two members absent had a different view than those who voted.
Unfortunately, this whole debate has turned into a loyalty test for our community. This debate is not about patriotism. It is about the right of free speech and dissent. And it is also about how to implement the will of the majority while also protecting the rights of the minority.
We spend much of our time in this country celebrating our differences, and so little time focusing on those experiences and beliefs we have in common. Attending public schools is one of those experiences common to most of us. Belief in our Constitution and our democratic form of government is another commonality.
That is why the Pledge of Allegiance is important. For those few minutes each morning, everyone has an opportunity to perform an act that binds us together, for a common purpose and a shared value - supporting our Constitution. And no matter what race, religion or background we are from, first we are all Americans. American citizens, at this moment, are in harm's way protecting the freedoms we enjoy in Madison. Those among us who do not take pride in that fact need to take a serious look at themselves.
The pledge is not about religion. Yes, the word God appears. But the pledge is about affirming our commitment to the democracy that protects our rights and freedom. Rights and freedoms that we all share.
One of those freedoms is the right to dissent. I support the right of those who wish to not participate in the pledge. But I also feel strongly that others have the right to perform the pledge.
It is ironic that while my relative was being buried, with military honors I might add, the Madison Board of Education was voting to ban the Pledge of Allegiance in our schools.
It is also ironic that my most vivid memories of him are the discussions we had about his service to our country during World War II. He spoke proudly of fighting in defense of this country, a country in which he, an African-American living in a segregated South, could not share the full benefits of the democracy for which he was willing to sacrifice his life.
On Monday, I voted to restore the Pledge of Allegiance. My life was not at stake, but showing respect for our country was.
Ray Allen is a member of the Madison School Board.
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