Roughly 50 Boulder High School students walked out of class, protesting the reading of the Pledge of Allegiance and recited their own version, omitting “one nation, under God.” The students insist that the phrase constitutes official recognition of religion and therefore constitutes a violation of church and state. The courts, however, have treated the pledge as more of a secular symbol of the country while requiring schools to allow students to refuse to recite the pledge. So long as it is not mandatory, it has been permitted. While some officials and politicians are quite angry over the protest, the students are showing a healthy interest in a long-running constitutional debate. High school is where we train future citizens. I would rather the students spending their efforts on constitutional controversies than debating who should have won Dancing with the Stars. There are many academics who agree with these students and many that disagree. However, it is a worthy debate and one that the school should embrace.
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