PHOENIX — Republican lawmakers have introduced a bill that would give Arizona high school seniors the option to recite a loyalty oath before they graduate.
Originally, House Bill 2467 would have made the oath a prerequisite for graduation from any public high school in the state. The Arizona Capitol Times reported the change Tuesday.
“To me it’s not a Republican bill, it’s not a Democrat bill, it’s an American bill,” said Rep. Steve Smith of Maricopa, one of the bill’s sponsors. “People feel that our high school kids that will be adults should understand their role as an American citizen.”
The oath, which would be pledged to the school principal, reads:
“I, _____, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose or evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge these duties; so help me God.”
If passed, HB 2467 would take effect starting in the 2013-14 school year.
I’m sure those last four words of the oath is going to gear up some debate, if not the whole thing.
Here’s the USA Today’s version of the story.
I am an atheist and will never swear on oath to some deity in whom I have no belief. Bills like this only further the perception that atheists are second class citizens in this country. Whatever happened to freedom of (from) religion?
Deborah, if it makes you feel any better, I am a Christian pastor and I would never swear on this oath; nor would I let my kids do it. Though I do believe in God, the deity portrayed in this bill is one "in whom I have no belief."