Southland Educators Assail U.S. Ruling

After a federal court declared recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools unconstitutional Wednesday, many Southern California educators called the ruling a blow to patriotism and insisted it will not stop their classroom ritual--complete with the controversial phrase “under God.”

“I feel like a deflated balloon. They just let out my pride,” said Joseph Santana, a Vietnam War veteran and principal of John Adams Middle School in South Los Angeles. “What do we have left if we cannot have respect for our country and demonstrate it outwardly?”

Santana said he would obey the decision if upheld, but not without protest.

Attorneys and officials at school districts in Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties said Santana need not worry, because they expect the ruling to be quickly put on hold for an appeal, and probably overturned.

Harold Kwalwasser, general counsel for the Los Angeles Unified School District, said there is “some credibility to the court’s argument” that the pledge’s reference to God unconstitutionally mixes church and state. But he said that he expects the decision to be reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court and that his district will hold off on changing any policies for now.

Reciting the pledge, however, is voluntary for California students and is usually conducted at the start of the day in elementary and middle schools, led by teachers or students in honorary rotations facing flags hanging from classroom walls or held by hand.

As they have for generations, student pledgers stand, cover their hearts with their right hands and struggle over the word “indivisible.”

Some high schools pledge only at assemblies or sports events, while others broadcast the pledge during every homeroom period over sometimes-crackling public address systems. Not all high school students pay attention, but teachers say they are at least not disruptive during the patriotic minute.

Even if participation is voluntary, a majority of the panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said, the phrase “under God” conveys a sense of state endorsement of religious belief to impressionable youngsters when led by teachers. Aaron Stell, a teacher at Grant High School in Van Nuys, where the pledge is said during every homeroom period, said he welcomed the ruling because he was skeptical of displays of nationalism.

“It shouldn’t be forced on students,” he said, saying he tells his students they should feel free to abstain. Stell said about two-thirds of his class take part in the pledge.

Ventura County Supt. of Schools Charles Weis said the ruling makes perfect sense in this multicultural society. He said he hopes the pledge can be retained and frequently recited without the reference to God.

That way, he said, the pledge would enable “everyone to demonstrate their patriotism, regardless of their religious beliefs.”

But reactions of sadness, anger or confusion were more common.

Butool Abdullah, 13, a Muslim student who attends Etiwanda High School in Rancho Cucamonga, said she recites the pledge every day and has never been offended by the reference to God, even if it was written without Islam in mind.

“I believe in God, so one God works for me,” she said.

Francisco Lopez, 16, a freshman at Monroe who was born in Mexico and has limited English skills, said the Pledge of Allegiance has helped him learn the language and give thanks to his new home.

“This country opened its arms to me and my family,” Lopez said, “and every time I say it, I am saying, ‘Thank you.’ ”

At Francis Polytechnic High School in Sun Valley, Principal Christine Clark said she was appalled by the decision.

“In this day and age, when patriotism is something that we’re all holding on to so dearly, to have one of the symbols of patriotism called unconstitutional ... it’s amazing to me,” she said.

Lloyd Houske, principal of Cahuenga Elementary School in Koreatown, said most students at the school come from intensely religious Korean and Central American immigrant families.

So to them, he said, it makes no sense to ban the word “God.”

“There are so many different names for God,” Houske said.

“It just seems to me that in our desire to protect the rights of everybody, sometimes that ends up not being the best thing,” he said.

Most school administrators and school board members said they will ignore the court’s ruling.

“We’re going to continue to recite the pledge as we know it today,” said Al Mijares, superintendent of the Santa Ana Unified School District. “If we get some edict that completely prohibits us from saying it, I’ll have to evaluate it.”

Harald Martin, a trustee with the Anaheim Union High School District, said he would not support discontinuing the pledge.

“Sometimes people do foolish things, and that doesn’t preclude jurists.”

Times staff writers Jeff Gottlieb and Manuel Gamiz contributed to this article.