Michigan city council drops Pledge of Allegiance recitation

A city council in Michigan has decided not to recite the Pledge of Allegiance during meetings any more after one member seemed to suggest it took up too much time.

Last week, the issue was discussed at an organizational meeting for the City Council of Ypsilanti, a city of about 20,000 residents and the home of Eastern Michigan University. That meeting stretched late into the night, and members decided to revisit the issue at a meeting on Tuesday, WEMU reported.

‘If anybody doesn’t want to say it, I feel like we just individually take the stance to not say it.’

Council member Desirae Simmons then introduced a resolution to end the practice, claiming, in WEMU’s words, that “the pledge takes up space on their agenda.”

“I know I don’t feel comfortable pledging allegiance to a flag. And so I don’t participate in that, so I wanted to bring it up as a formal change to our agenda,” Simmons explained in a statement.

“Really, our role is to our residents here in the community, here in the city of Ypsilanti,” she further added, according to MLive. “And so I guess that’s what I took my oath of office to, and I think that that’s sufficient.”

Simmons and four other members voted in favor of dropping the pledge. Only one member, Roland Tooson, voted to keep it.

“If anybody doesn’t want to say it, I feel like we just individually take the stance to not say it,” Tooson said. “I don’t think we should just take it off the agenda completely.”

During the meeting, members discussed possible alternatives to the pledge, including “breathing exercises or other ‘grounding’ practices,” according to MLive. They also discussed a moment of silence, which is already a regular agenda item.

“I would just like to maintain the few moments that we have for us to center ourselves,” said Mayor Nicole Brown. “… I do enjoy the quiet for a second. For me, I feel like I need that.”

While council members may make suggestions about possible replacements for the pledge, the mayor ultimately sets the agenda, City Manager Andrew Hellenga told MLive.

H/T: Dave Bondy

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