Pledge of Allegiance Protest

The ACLU of Colorado sent a letter to the Superintendent of Littleton Public Schools after being notified that a student was discouraged from sitting in protest during the Pledge of Allegiance.

An elementary student at a Littleton Public School intended to sit during their class's daily recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, in silent and non-disruptive protest against immigration enforcement actions that are negatively affecting their community. The student’s teacher and the paraprofessional in the classroom told them they were being “disrespectful” and discouraged the student from exercising their rights. These comments effectively coerced the child into standing and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance with the rest of the class, violating the student’s First Amendment rights.

The ACLU of Colorado sent a letter to the Littleton Public Schools Superintendent explaining the Supreme Court cases, West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette and Tinker v. Des Moines, that guarantee students’ First Amendment right to protest in a “peaceable and orderly” manner at school. In particular, Barnette was decided 80 years ago, and allows public school students to refuse to stand for the Pledge. The letter also encouraged the school district to provide training to teachers in order to avoid situations like this in the future.