A Salute to Tradition : Pledge of Allegiance Restored After Effort by Activist Groups

Student leaders at Saddleback College on Thursday reinstated the Pledge of Allegiance at student body government meetings, ending a year-and-a-half ban on the flag salute that angered many residents, veterans and civic officials.

Restoring the pledge was the first act of Saddleback’s newly elected Associated Student Government.

The pledge “is not 31 words recited to show blind patriotism, as charged by some,” President Rick Travis said before a standing-room-only crowd after the pledge was recited. “It’s a time for us to remember our ancestors . . . whether native, immigrant or slave . . . and to remember those who gave their lives for us.”

Student leaders during the past two administrations, including past president and Army veteran Jeff Haskell, thought the pledge alienated atheists, minorities and foreign students, and so should not be recited at executive Cabinet meetings. However, they allowed the public to say the pledge during public comments if they so chose.

Since the former student governments banned the pledge in January 1995, veterans groups, civic leaders and flag supporters had fought to get the salute back on the agenda. Many of them attended Thursday’s meeting.

Sporting flag memorabilia and wearing their Veterans of Foreign Wars caps, about 60 supporters rallied behind the new student leaders and celebrated the return of a tradition.

Many stood in line after the 15-minute meeting, which also included the singing of the national anthem and a patriotic display by young singers from Celebration USA, to congratulate the 34-year-old Travis.

“It’s just wonderful,” said Leisure World resident June Hicks. “A lot of people hold this very near and dear.”

For the past year, many of these same flag supporters attended nearly every student government meeting, defiantly rising to recite the pledge as the meeting was called to order, despite the ban.

“We didn’t demand that they say the pledge, we only asked that they put it on the agenda,” said San Clemente resident and Korean War and World War II veteran George Key, 72, who led the campaign to reinstate the 104-year-old salute.

Even city officials got into the fray.

Last spring, the city councils of San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano and Newport Beach passed resolutions calling for the reinstatement of the pledge, while the Laguna Hills City Council publicly chastised student leaders for their stance on the salute.

But with a change of student leadership last spring came a change in philosophy.

“What I found when I was campaigning was that students really wanted the pledge back,” Travis said. “It’s not just about the flag, it’s a symbol for what America stands for. We’ve lost sight of that.”

Now that Saddleback’s controversy has been resolved, student leaders and school officials are relieved.

“We were hoping that the student government could get past this issue,” said Doug Barr, dean of student development. “Now we can get on to the business of helping our students and learning.”

Travis, a biological anthropology major, agreed, saying that his major focus now will be on providing child care for single parents on campus.

“It’s time to get on to more important issues,” Travis said.