Arizona Elementary Parent 'Pledges' To Bring Down Pledge Diversity

A father of a second grader threw a political tantrum when he found out his son was being asked to say the Pledge of Allegiance in Spanish and Sign Language, following the English version. The school and district support the teacher’s actions.

A father in one Arizona school district has decided to take the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance to a whole new level, according to an Arizona report. When Lance Altherr found out that his second grade son was being asked to say the pledge in three different languages, a practice the teacher employed for years as part of expanding her student’s skills, he not only flipped out and demanded it cease, but he went on an Internet tirade and apparently created a controversy over the districts respect for the country. Ann Lee, a teacher at Gale Elementary School in the Tucson Unified School District for year has had her students recite the pledge in English first, out of respect and honor for our country. Then she has them recite it in Spanish and in Sign-Language, two languages that are commonly used in the United States and not only broaden the communication skills at an age-appropriate level, but provide diversity training in the classroom as well. When Altherr got word of Lee’s long-time practice, he spoke with her and the principal of the school, demanding they stop. The principal, Paula Godfrey, stood her ground and did not cease the tri-language pledge. She did allow the student to move to another class at the parent’s request, according to the news report. Displeased with the district’s actions, Altherr, a landscaper and member of the Minutemen Civil Defense Corp, began sending out emails and Internet postings that have created a barrage of negative feedback relating to illegal immigration and disrespect for citizenship from across the country. District spokesperson, Chyrl Lander, seemed fairly benign about the situation, stating

"They recite the pledge in English every morning, and they recite the pledge in Spanish. After they recite it in Spanish, then they sign the Pledge of Allegiance."

Godfry did check with other districts, Department of Education and school attorneys to ensure that Lee’s classroom methods were not offensive or breaking any regulations prior to giving Lee approval. She also checked with the National Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and initially, they sent her an email stating that it is

"not disrespectful to say the Pledge of Allegiance in either" language "as long as it was stated as written."

However, in a later email sent by the National Direction of the VFW, Godfry was “chastised” for not identifying herself as a principal and the VFW’s initial answer was recanted, stating that the practice should stop. In their recant, they were quoted as saying

"To allow Spanish speaking adults the freedom to pledge their allegiance to our nation in their native language is completely respectful. However, to require English-speaking second-grade students to recite the Pledge in Spanish is another matter entirely. To the Veterans of Foreign Wars, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance is a sacred and meaningful exercise."

In 2006, the Tucson Unified School District was at the core of a controversial immigration issues when labor activist, Dolores Huerta, made an inflammatory statement during a Tucson High School speech stating

“Republicans hate Latinos”

and again, later, when a district student was busted for marijuana, that uncovered the illegal immigrant status of her and her entire family, leading to their deportation. This sparked a protest march of the students. District superintendent and board members feel that Lee’s teachings are a way to get children to learn, and as long as the Pledge of Allegiance is spoken first, then no disrespect is had. It is also hypothesized that Altherr’s response is just a spillover from the illegal immigration debates that have surrounded the district. Is it disrespectful to teach 7-year-olds to say the Pledge of Allegiance in Spanish, a language commonly spoken in the United States by LEGAL IMMIGRANTS, Citizens, and bordering countries, and in Sign Language, a language that is commonly spoken in the United States in every school, after they formally say it in the language of our country?