Attorneys for the Aberdeen Matawan school district argued Wednesday for the inclusion of "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, asking a Superior Court judge to deny a lawsuit claiming the pledge is discriminatory.
The challenge was argued before the court by attorneys from the American Humanist Association, which is representing the unnamed family in the case. The family is atheist. The AHA has been active nationwide in fighting the inclusion of “under God” in the pledge as part of its push for a secular government.
In Wednesday’s arguments before Judge David Bauman, David Niose, AHA attorney,
said the pledge was not voluntary, The Associated Press reported.
“Harm is occurring every day the state is invalidating the plaintiff’s religious class,” Niose said. Bauman said evidence that the student was “bullied, ostracized or in any way mistreated” wasn’t given. The school district does require that parents submit, in writing, an explanation of why any student won’t participate in the pledge.
District attorney David Rubin, who argued for the school district, called the pledge “an innocuous reference to the deity in a ceremonial setting,” and added that saying it was not a religious exercise, the AP said. Other courts faced with the same issue have ruled that the pledge doesn’t constitute the establishment of religion.
The Becket Fund, an organization that fights for “religious liberty,” joined the argument on the school district’s side, representing Samantha Jones,
a teenager in the district who wants the lawsuit dismissed, Today’s News Gazette reported.
Bauman did not rule immediately, but the AP said he was expected to rule quickly.
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