Senator Ashley Moody has introduced legislation aimed at the public school system in Washington, D.C., mandating daily displays of the American flag and a routine recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
The proposed PLEDGE Act would require each classroom to feature the flag prominently and obligate school administrators to provide students the opportunity to recite the pledge each school day.
According to the bill’s supporters, several schools in the capital currently lack a flag display and do not allocate time for the pledge, a situation they attribute to a broader emphasis on activist education.
Advocates argue that patriotic symbols have been sidelined in favor of curricula that encourage criticism of the United States, and they contend that teaching the nation’s founding principles is essential for fostering civic responsibility.
While more than 40 states have enacted various requirements for the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools, Washington, D.C. remains without such a mandate.
The legislation emerges amid a competitive mayoral race in the district, where a candidate identified with democratic socialist ideals leads the field, reflecting a national trend of growing left‑leaning political movements.
Recent polling shows that only 41 % of Generation Z respondents describe themselves as extremely or very proud to be American, compared with 58 % of all U.S. adults, marking the lowest levels of national pride recorded in the survey’s history.
District public school standards incorporate progressive topics, including studies of LGBTQ+ history, the influence of queer culture during the Black Renaissance, and the experiences of LGBTQ+ service members after World War II.
During the previous administration, federal actions restored prominent patriotic symbols to the capital, including the installation of large American flags on the White House grounds and the removal of a “Black Lives Matter” mural near the executive residence.
Officials from the District of Columbia Public Schools have been contacted for comment on the proposed legislation.
