The Oath of Allegiance is a much weightier and more substantive thing than the Pledge of Allegiance:
The legal requirements for the Oath of Allegiance (or “Oath of renunciation and allegiance”) are set out in 8 U.S.C. 1448. Note that the oath, as given above, can be modified in certain ways: At the simple request of the applicant, it can be modified to say “solemnly affirm” instead of “declare on oath” and “so help me God” can be omitted. The references to bearing arms on behalf of the United States, and even of performing noncombatant service in the U.S. armed forces, can be dropped, but those modifications require “clear and convincing evidence” from the applicant of some genuine religious objection to such service (and may even require “an attestation from the religious organization explaining its beliefs and that the applicant is in good standing with the organization”), so you probably aren’t just going to be able to make up a religion on the spot. (Though there may also be court cases; IANAL.) And a naturalized citizen can’t get out of doing “work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law” no matter what.
In general, the oath of allegiance is a requirement, but it can be waived “for an applicant who is unable to understand or to communicate an understanding of its meaning because of a physical or developmental disability or mental impairment”, which has also been deemed to include all children under the age of 14.
Citizenship, whether for native-born or naturalized citizens can be lost; I suppose this is like a divorce–you used to be a citizen (you used to be married), but now you aren’t. Naturalized citizenships can also be revoked. In such cases, it may be found that the person didn’t actually meet the requirements for naturalization; for example, if it turns out you didn’t really “absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity” to His Majesty the King of Ruritania. If His Majesty had granted you a dukedom back in the Old Country, you’re supposed to separately renounce that at the time you take the Oath of Allegiance; if His Majesty had in fact made you a duke and you didn’t disclose that and renounce your title, that might be enough to revoke your naturalization. Mainly, if you’re a Commie or something like that this is deemed to show that you were not really “attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States” and were not “well disposed to the good order and happiness of the United States” at the time you took the oath of allegiance. Revocation, if I’m not mistaken, is more like annulment–you were never really a citizen (were never really married) because your supposed citizenship (marriage) was based on fraud.
Now “oath” doesn’t sound like a word. Oath oath oath.
I said the Pledge every day when I was an elementary school kid in the US, and I was a foreign national. I didn’t really think about what it meant. It was something we did automatically every morning. I think one kid, who was a Jehovah’s Witness, was excused, and everyone thought it was weird.
I said this as a scout leader in Canada, where I’m not a citizen. I figured it was left open to me to decide exactly what my duty to God and the Queen were.
I gave it about as much internal weight as my duty to Thor and Ban Ki-moon.
I’ve also signed something about defending the Constitution of the United States, but I seriously doubt it was the full Oath of Allegiance. The critical activity requiring that was my 3-hour-per-week job grading calculus homework for a University of California school.
Maybe he was a child in the 70s, but I was a child in the 1960s. Hari Seldon, who posted a few posts ago, was a child in the 1950s. I didn’t see anything indicating that this thread was limited to the last 14 years.
I plead alignment to the flakes of the untitled snakes of a merry cow, and to the Republicans for which they scam, one nacho, underpants, invisible, with licorice and jugs of wine for owls.
It seems even weirder to demand a child to recite it. The need to “pledge” one’s “allegiance” without even basic comprehension . . . strikes me as being rather unAmerican.
I was a kid, in the 50s*, when “under God” was added. It was no more meaningful to us than remembering, a few years later, that there were now two new states.
I’m sure many uber-patriots would be shocked to learn that the Pledge was written by an anti-capitalist socialist and that originally you were supposed to extend your arm out toward the flag in a way that would later be adopted by the you know whos.
The Oath of Allegiance (Judicial or Official Oath) is a promise to be loyal to the British monarch, and their heirs and successors, sworn by certain public servants in the United Kingdom, and also by newly naturalised subjects in citizenship ceremonies.
Scouts and Guides Scouts started to accept girls in the 90s, partly because their numbers were falling. Guides still remains an all female organisation.
Guides make a similar promise and like scouts, many of them like to make it in unusual locations like at the top of the Jungfrau, on a roller coaster or down a cave
It had become hide-bound tradition by the 1930s; in fact, when it started in 1892 it was part of a commemoration of Columbus Day.
Until the Nazi salute was widely known, the pledge salute was the same–right hand extended, upward, palm forward. After Hitler ’ s salute became wide known in the U.S., the right-hand - over - heart was substituted.
In any case, the Pledge and flag salute were never sanctioned by statute–local, State, or federal.
I was a child in the '90s, and we said it in class every day up until I graduated in 2001. In fact, as a JROTC cadet, I said it twice - once in homeroom and then again in JROTC class.
By the way, you don’t “take” the Pledge, you just recite it. It’s not really promising anything. It’s just a statement of patriotism.
Oh, and Beverly Cleary fans are surely familiar with the “dawnzer lee light?”
OP, if it wouldn’t be giving away more identifying information than you wish to share, could you tell us of this place where recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance by all attendees is mandatory at municipal meetings?
By the way, if you decline to participate in the reenactment of the Pledge of Allegiance, and are called out on it, you can always respond that you take pledges of allegiance very seriously.
Under this rubric, it’s not appropriate to pledge allegiance to the same symbol and institution multiple times, unless you have renounced your most recent recitation of it. People who claim to have a problem with this are merely revealing how little respect THEY have for the Pledge.