Kara Brown's Letter
July 5, 2002
The freedom to choose
Kara Brown expressed a mistaken point of view in her letter Tuesday ("Pledge is fine if you need it").
The issue is neither free exercise of religion nor free speech. Kara and her classmates are free to recite the entire Pledge of Allegiance or not, as they choose.
If the government explicitly stated she could not make such an assertion, it would indeed be, in her words, "tantamount to our government saying that (God) doesn't exist" and a violation of her rights.
But what the court decided is that teachers, as agents of the government, cannot lead the students in reciting a religious declaration, which the pledge is by virtue of containing the words "under God." By leading the students in that recitation, the government has established an official religious position, which is forbidden by the First Amendment.
Having asserted that the government cannot violate individual rights by saying God does not exist, Kara cannot then ignore the logical conclusion that the government also cannot violate individual rights by saying God does exist.
By forbidding teachers to lead students in reciting the pledge, the court has denied no one's individual rights, since individuals may still act. It is the state - and its agents - that is forbidden to act.