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Politics : Piffer Thread on Political Rantings and Ravings -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Original Mad Dog who wrote (2802)	10/16/2001 11:59:46 AM
From: Augustus Gloop	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 14610

Nice work folks! Madison School Board Reverses Decision District Received More Than 20,000 Calls, E-Mails Last Week Posted: 6:53 a.m. EDT October 16, 2001 Updated: 7:03 a.m. EDT October 16, 2001 MADISON -- The Madison School Board voted early Tuesday to permit schools to offer the Pledge of Allegiance to comply with a state law that requires a daily display of patriotism. The board voted 6-1 for the proposal after eight hours of testimony from emotional residents about its decision last week to only allow an instrumental version of the national anthem in the Madison Metropolitan School District. Board members had decided to eliminate the pledge as an option after some parents complained about the "one nation, under God" line. But the board reversed its position Tuesday in voting in favor of schools being permitted to offer the pledge. "I don' t think the pledge is about religion. I think it is a commitment to our democracy," board member Ray Allen said Tuesday. The 800-seat auditorium at Madison Memorial High School was overflowing Monday evening and into Tuesday with citizens wanting to express their opinion. The board last week ruled out the pledge as a way for schools to comply with a new student patriotism law. That law, included in the state budget passed this summer, requires public schools to give students a daily opportunity to say the pledge or hear the national anthem. The school district initially allowed schools to decide how they wanted to comply, but the board passed a motion last week directing schools to only use an instrumental version of the anthem, ruling out the pledge and the words of the anthem. Under the new policy the board approved early Tuesday, schools can offer either the pledge or anthem. The recitation or singing of either must be introduced with the following statement: "We live in a nation of freedom. Participation in the pledge is voluntary. Whoever wishes to participate may stand, those who do not may sit." Board member Bill Keys, who authored the original motion limiting daily displays of patriotism to the instrumental anthem, was the only member of the board to vote against reconsidering that decision and the new policy on the pledge. Keys said his primary concern was making certain that students of all religions and backgrounds were comfortable in the classroom, something he believed would have been accomplished by playing an instrumental version of the national anthem. Before the meeting started, the crowd spontaneously began reciting the pledge, with the majority standing as some scattered boos were heard. After finishing the oath, supporters broke into applause, waving American flags. Keys said the behavior of some adults in the auditorium -- including those who shouted at speakers they disagreed with -- demonstrated that some children would cave in to pressure from classmates or teachers to say the pledge, even if it conflicted with their beliefs. "You saw it done in this hall tonight, with litmus tests and artificial displays of patriotism," Keys said. Outside the board meeting, several parents led by former U.S. Rep. Scott Klug, R-Wis., said they intend to seek the recall of some or all of the board members. "If they didn' t know what they were doing last week," Klug told reporters, "then what other decisions are they making where they don' t have a clue?" Public testimony started about 5:30 p.m. Monday and ended about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday. District spokesman Ken Syke said 233 people signed up to speak before the board, but 165 actually did. Each had three minutes. The board also allowed about two dozen students to testify first so that they could get home and do their homework. "Do I feel a pressure to participate (in reciting the pledge)?" asked Liana Prescott, a senior at Memorial. "Absolutely. Are there others who bow to this pressure? I cannot doubt it." Board President Calvin Williams, Keys and Carol Carstensen had voted last week in favor of the pledge policy, while Ruth Robarts and Shwaw Vang voted against it. Members Juan Jose Lopez and Allen were absent from that vote. The district has received more than 20,000 phone calls and e-mails over the last week, many from out of state. Almost all of them have denounced the decision. Vang, who is originally from Laos, said he and his family received threatening calls and e-mails last week following his initial vote in favor of eliminating the pledge as an option. "I've never been so scared for my wife or my kids in all the years I've been here since 1978, " he said.