14 DAY TRIAL // A Florida teacher has been suspended for making a student say the Pledge of Allegiance.
The student is a Jehovah’s Witness and he has been forcefully made to recite the oath. New York Daily News describes the teacher taking his arm and twisting in, putting it on his chest in order for him to recite the Pledge.
Hernando County school teacher Anne Daigle-McDonald became angry as she believed that the child was refusing to accept that he is a US citizen.
"You are an American, and you are supposed to salute the flag," Daigle-McDonald allegedly told him.
The young boy had explained to her that his religion does not allow him to worship inanimate objects.
The incident happened twice, first on September 11, the anniversary of the terrorist attacks that killed 3,000 people in New York City 12 years ago.
The young boy was unwilling to take part in saying the Pledge. They repeated the gesture again the next day, and he refused to do so once more.
She reacted violently and placed his hand on his chest, calling him out in front of the class and trying to turn his case into an example for disobedient students.
"In my classroom, everyone will do the pledge; no religion says that you can't do the pledge.
"If you don't want to say the pledge, you still have to put your hand on your heart and if you don't want to do that, you should move out of the country," she said.
She claims that him doodling during the Pledge is disrespectful, but he argues that he has stood up the whole time. His classmates have confirmed his story.
"She touched a child and that is no-no. She should not be teaching here. She should not be teaching children," grandparent Donna Walker expresses.
The teacher has only been suspended without pay for five days. She was not fired, she was transferred to a different school and made to undergo diversity training.