Michigan teacher assaults student for sitting during Pledge

Stone Chaney
[source]

I spent part of my childhood in Texas – basically grew up there – and one thing I always thought was weird was how teachers made us stand to recite the Pledge of Allegiance every morning. As a young French-speaking kid who was new to English, I didn’t know most of the words I was repeating by ear (luckily my voice was drowned out by the class, else the teacher might have thought I was mocking it), nor did I have a clue what the silly chant meant. I just knew we had to say it, so I didn’t question it.

Of course, I’ve since learned that reciting or standing for the Pledge is optional, with the Supreme Court ruling in 1943 that students cannot be punished for declining to partake in the mindless drone. Had I known that, I may well have chosen to park my keister and wait for the teacher to get back to actually teaching.

Then again, perhaps it’s a good thing I didn’t, or my teacher might have found it provocation enough to assault me, as apparently happened to this Michigan sixth-grader:

A Michigan teacher has been put on leave after being accused of “violently snatching” a black student from his seat because he refused to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.

According to WDIV, 6th grader Stone Chaney was sitting in his homeroom class at East Middle School in Farmington Hills in his first week at the school when he was grabbed from behind by the teacher.

“The teacher consultant comes up behind me and snatches me out of my chair violently,” Stone explained to WDIV while demonstrating on his father how he was hoisted out of his chair. “I was so confused. I didn’t know what was going on.”

According to the 12-year-old, he was sitting during the pledge as he has done without incident since he was in the second grade.

“I don’t stand because I don’t pledge to a flag. I pledge to God and family,” the student explained, adding that the following day, another teacher yelled at him for the same offense.

The school district is doing the right thing, affirming their students’ right to ignore the Pledge and suspending the teacher pending an investigation. The second teacher, the one who “yelled” at Chaney, also needs to be investigated. I’d also suggest they arrange a conference for the teaching staff to educate them about the 74-year-old legal cornerstone that so many of them don’t seem to grasp.

(via @Popehat)