Pledge of Allegiance - In Massachusetts, Democratic State Congressman Frank Smizik vocally backed a 2011 effort by the Brookline Political Action for Peace group to ban the Pledge of Allegiance in school. The group said that the pledge had no educational value and was “reminiscent of totalitarian regimes.” While students already had the right not to say the pledge, Smizik claimed that students who refused were being bullied. He agreed to co-sign the resolution, citing both the First Amendment and a calling it an anti-bullying measure. At the time, School Committee Chairwoman Rebecca Stone was reported to have said that, with other important issues on their agenda, she didn't believe that the Committee intended to reconsider the existing policy.
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